Growing redwood and sequoia trees in Southern California gardens
Yes, you can grow redwood and sequoia trees in Southern California. Rick Akers, who lives in Long Beach, has mature specimens that prove the point.
“I planted both from seedlings I procured at Yosemite National Park 35 years ago,” Akers wrote. “I grew them in pots for a while before planting them out. The redwood really took off and is 50 to 60 feet tall, while the sequoia is about fifteen feet all.”
There is a tendency to speak of redwoods generically or to use the terms “redwood” and “sequoia” interchangeably, but that is a mistake, nomenclature notwithstanding. Sequoia sempervirens is the botanical name of the redwood or coast redwood, while Sequoiadendron giganteum is the botanical name of the giant sequoia. Redwoods grow in a strip from the central coast into Oregon. Sequoias are found in an even more restricted area along the western slopes of the Sierras, in Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks up to Yosemite. Redwood forests consist purely of redwoods while sequoia forests are mixed with other conifers.
Coast redwoods grow faster in Northern than in Southern California due to the cool and moist conditions that prevail in their habitat up north and grow much faster than sequoias as a group. California historians frequently cite the mystique of redwood trees – beginning 120 years ago with John Muir’s otherworldly descriptions of them – as a factor in drawing easterners to visit and eventually settle in this state.
The oldest sequoias, at 3,200 years old, are more ancient than the oldest redwoods, whose oldest specimens are 2,600 years old. Growth habits differ, too, as redwoods are taller and thinner, topping out at 370 feet tall, whereas the stockier sequoias, of greater volume than the redwoods, reach around 250 feet in height. An interesting feature of these trees is that they are monoecious, producing both male and female cones on the same tree, developing on shoot or needle tips, but on separate branches. The female cones are significantly larger than their male counterparts.
If you decide to plant a redwood, several options for planting beneath them are available. Giant chain fern (Woodwardia fimbriata), reaching up to five feet tall in our area, immediately comes to mind as it is seen growing under redwoods in their habitat. Many ferns are surprisingly drought tolerant, especially when mulched, and do not require fertilization. Most grow from rhizomes and, when they become shabby, are rejuvenated by being cut back to ground level.
Other natives recommended for growing under redwoods or in their shade include: Oregon grape (Mahonia species), western bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa), redwood sorrel (Oxalis oregana), manzanita (Arctostaphylos spp.), meadow rue (Thalictrum spp.), as well as coral bells (Heuchera spp.) The outstanding feature of Heucheras is their foliage. The most popular selections have large, ruffled, purple-to-bronze colored leaves, but there is also a noteworthy lime green cultivar and a gunpowder blue.
An exotic tree that many may not know about is the dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides), which was first discovered in 1945, in China. This deciduous redwood can live for more than a millennium, growing to a height of a hundred feet. Exotic dawn redwood varieties including ‘Goldrush,’ with golden yellow foliage and two dwarfs – ‘Chubby,’ which reaches 16 feet tall, and ‘Miss Grace,’ which stays under ten feet.
California natives of the week:
Seaside buckwheat (Eriogonum latifolium/grande rubescens) and St. Catherine’s lace (Eriogonum giganteum). Perhaps the showiest of summer-blooming natives, seaside buckwheat makes an outstanding ground cover, growing to a height of around eighteen inches, with deep pink flower spheres rising a foot above its foliage on long stems. You get more flowers by deadheading those that have begun to fade. There is a large planting of seaside buckwheat at Descanso Gardens in La Canada. As you enter from Descanso Drive, you will see it on your right, growing in close proximity to St. Catherine’s lace (Eriogonum giganteum), another native buckwheat whose white flowers turn a fall-appropriate burnt orange, contrasting well with its grayish-white foliage. St. Catherine’s lace is one of the toughest, most drought-tolerant California natives. Growing up to eight feet tall and wide, its flat flower clusters, raised high above its foliage, persist for months, attracting bees, butterflies, and birds. The flowers are also outstanding candidates for everlasting arrangements.
Please send questions, comments, and photos to joshua@perfectplants.com