PlantFiles: Dawn Redwood
Metasequoia glyptostroboides 'Miss Grace'

Bought this plant to remind my hubby of his youth growing up in the redwood forests of Northern California. He recognized it immediately as a redwood. We were crushed when in mid-November the needles fell off. It happened at the same time that the bark started peeling like paper from the trunk, so we figured that our late fall spread of ashes across our gardens killed it by neutralizing the soil pH. What a happy surprise this spring when it needled out again. It's done wonderfully and handled DC's hot, humid summer and the year long drought, during which time I freely admit, I hardly ever watered it. Hopefully it will continue to flourish this year. Its peeling bark looks fabulous in the winter landscape (now that I know it's just dormant, not dead), and its soft weeping form is very attractive in our small, shaded, south-facing garden.