Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Ivonne - Lawsons Cypress

The Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Ivonne' is one of the most colourful varieties of conifers with its very intense lemon yellow evergreen foliage. This highly ornamental tree has a conical, compact habit with upright branches, making it ideal for creating beautiful privacy hedges that are resistant to sea spray, pollution, and cold weather. With slow growth, it requires little pruning. Its moderate development also makes it suitable for individual planting, even in smaller spaces. This low-maintenance plant will thrive in sheltered locations with cool, fertile, deep, and well-drained soil.

The Lawson Cypress, sometimes called false cypress, is a majestic conifer of the Cupressaceae family native to the moist coastal forests of the northwest United States. In its natural environment, it often reaches heights exceeding 30m (98.4ft) with a trunk diameter approaching 1m (3.3ft). It has an upright, conical habit, and its pendulous branches form soft curtains adorned with fairly dark, bluish-green foliage. It has given rise to numerous cultivars, including a wide range of plants with more modest stature, better suited to the size of our gardens.

The 'Ivonne' variety is a very beautiful form of this species that will not exceed 5m (16.4ft) in height and 2m (6.6ft) in width. From a young age, it exhibits a conical habit that is slender, narrow and very dense, supported by upright branches emerging from the base of the trunk. Its slender and flattened branches are densely covered with lemon-yellow scale-like leaves that turn slightly green during summer heat and on shaded parts of the foliage.

The Chamaecyparis lawsonia 'Ivonne' can be used as a hedge, as a specimen, or planted in a grove in a medium to small garden. It does not require pruning, but can tolerate light pruning. With a strong presence and a distinct personality, it is quite challenging to associate with other large shrubs, but it works well as a neutral-coloured screen at the back of shrub or perennial beds. The architectural qualities of conifers deserve to be more frequently used in our gardens, where they provide permanent structure. These plants are discreet in summer but assert themselves in winter when other flowers have deserted our gardens.