Its inviting scent makes this tree a great pick for landscaping.
However, this narrow, columnar evergreen tree is more than a lemon-scented holiday plant for indoors.
Lemon Cypress Care
One of the great things aboutC.
The Spruce / Missy Schrott
macrocarpaGoldcrest is that it is an easy plant to care for.
Light
Lemon trees require a good amount of light.
Outdoors, a lemon cypress tree should be planted in full sun to partial shade.
The Spruce / Missy Schrott
Allow the plant to establish itself by watering it once a week during the first season.
Temperature and Humidity
A lemon cypress prefers cool, moist climates with temperatures between 20F and 80F.
Grown indoors, the lemon cypress needs to be kept in a place with sufficient humidity.
The Spruce / Missy Schrott
Fertilizer
Don’t fertilize a lemon cypress tree.
Types of Lemon Cypress
In addition to the straight species.Cupressus macrocarpa.
The only regularpruning maintenancerequired is when the lemon cypress is used as a hedge,bonsai, or topiary.
The Spruce / Missy Schrott
In these cases, it needs to be done carefully and in a timely fashion.
This shrub, like mostconifers, does not take well to hard pruning.
Pruning Tip
Looking for the best pruners for your lemon cypresses?
We tested 8top-rated prunersin our Lab to check that your shrubs stay happy and healthy.
Propagating Lemon Cypress
The best time for propagating lemon cypress from cuttings is in the winter.
If keeping the lemon cypress in a container, it should be repotted once every three to four years.
Below USDA zone 7, lemon cypress is best grown in a container and brought indoors during the winter.
These usually don’t affect the overall health of the tree and can be controlled with insecticidal soap.
A more serious problem is coryneum canker, a fungus that can kill the tree.
To keep it under control, remove infected branches promptly and dispose of them in the trash.
Evergreen Shrubs You Might Also Like
Yes.
The needles exude a light citrus fragrance when touched or crushed.
It depends on the variety.
No, lemon cypress will not repel mosquitoes.
US Forest Service Department of Agriculture.
Plants that repel mosquitoes.