PlantFiles: Deodar Cedar, Himalayan Cedar
Cedrus deodara

This tree was for sale at the local garden center, I thought I would give it a try. I have not seen them at my elevation, 1800 feet. I have seen them at 3000 feet. I am in Sunset zone 12.

I planted it in a wash, under the NE corner of a large Mesquite tree. It's in fast draining sandy loam soil, ph 7.5. It gets 6 hours of morning sun at this time of year, October. Will get occasional summer and winter floods, about 10 a year. Has a great alpine look, and will make a great addition to my desart forest if it lives.

Will post updates in a year to report on how it survives the summer heat of 110+ F.

I have 5 of these beautiful trees in my yard. 3 are grouped and are gorgeous with the area underneath covered with the short needles. I have one that is growing in an area of the yard that stays wet most of the time...it is on a hill so that might make a difference. It is growing at an unbelievable rate of about 6 feet per year. I have noticed some rather large conical shaped growths on the tree, about 4-5 inches in length and about 3 inches in diameter. Seems much too large for a cone from that tree but I don't know. Would love some direction with this issue. Have had a worm issues in the past but Sevin knocked them out.

The trees are beautiful. But. I have 2 trees at least 80 years old in my back yard. They are huge, and drop needles constantly. They hang over the driveway and the needles get into everything including car vents along the windshield and house gutters. The needles are slippery, so they need to be swept up if on a concrete surface. If you choose to plant this tree, make sure it's where you don't mind the needle drop, and that it is well away from the house and any sidewalks. And big trees produce a lot of yellow pollen in the fall.

Just barely tolerates the cold in my area which occasionally burns recent growth. Other than that, these are fantastic plants that grow quite quickly and pretty much take care of themselves after a few years of regular watering, sporting a very pretty, heavily drooping conical form.

I recently saw a golden deodara growing in Boise, Idaho. Out of its cold range, but apparently doing OK. Anyone with experience growing this in zone 5? Lilybob in Colorado.

There are quite a few deodar cedars in my area in the Ojai Valley. One of the nurseries has a HUGE tree in the front. I bought a small 4 ft. tall one for a xmas tree last xmas. It is still in the pot...I need to find a place to let it grow to maturity. Such a lovely, lovely tree with its coloring and gracefully drooping branches. A gift to treasure!

Cedrus deodara DEODAR CEDAR EG (z7) (Bon)
"A noble giant...& probably the best of the big conifers in the warmer localities"(Barber & Phillips);pyramidal & wide-spreading with branch tips "drooping in a manner that gives the whole tree a graceful aspect"S/GDr

This tree has the nicest shape but freeze in winter, I got four and four of them die at one gallon size. The nursery said 75%
of them dead at the nursery before they get in to market, this is why they are so expensive. The golden Deodora is easier to get freezed in Oklahoma.

I'm growing this in a 14" pot. Not sure if it will do well longterm but for 6 years now it's been happy and healthy. Label just read 'Deodar Cedar' but it has lovely silvery green foliage, a straight stem to about 4 feet then spreads out in a canopy shape 3 feet wide. Might be partly the result of somewhat cramped roots in pot, and the fact that it once blew over in storm and broke the top which I then trimmed back but I love the form it's taken. Grows in full sun.
A favorite of many small potted trees which I enjoy growing. josh z8a

Beautiful BEAUTIFUL tree... very drought-tolerant when it's older. We have them lining our road and they only get watered when it rains, and I live 15 min north of Palm Springs, California (U.S.)

I have collected the seeds and hope to grow more for our land; this tree has a very possitive A+ in my book - the weeping look of the tree is just beautiful!

This tree grows quickly, reaching up to 80 feet. It does need regular watering when it's young, but when it's established, it's drought-tolerant. It prefers full sun.

Fast growing to 80 ft, this is not a tree for a small yard, as it quickly takes up too much space with a 40 ft spread at ground level. It is a graceful appearing tree, with a distinctive nodding tip.