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Products > Cupressus guadalupensis 'Greenlee's Blue Rocket'
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| Category: Tree |
| Family: Cupressaceae (incl. Taxodiaceae) (Cypresses) |
| Origin: California (U.S.A.) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: Insignificant |
| Bloomtime: Not Significant |
| Synonyms: [Hesperocyparis, 'Greenlee's Silver Rocket'] |
| Height: 40-60 feet |
| Width: 6-8 feet |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Seaside: Yes |
| Summer Dry: Yes |
| Deer Tolerant: Yes |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Low Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 15-20° F |
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Cupressus guadalupensis 'Greenlee's Blue Rocket' (Greenlee's Blue Rocket) - This is an evergreen upright-growing tree with silvery-gray foliage. The oldest planted specimen known was growing in John Greenlee's garden in Pomona, California and it exhibited a much narrower growth habit than is typical of the species. Although ultimate height and width are still unknown, it will probably grow to at least 45 feet tall by 6-8 feet wide. Plant in full sun and given occasional to infrequent irrigation. This tree is drought tolerant with a cold hardiness of 15 degrees F. This is a wonderful western native cypress that looks like a rocket ship sprouted in the garden. In its native habitat on Guadalupe Island off of southern Baja California, where it grows at elevations about 2,500 feet, the species is known to reach nearly 60 feet tall with a broad rounded head. It is closely related to the Tecate Cypress, Cupressus guadalupensis var. forbesii, which has a range on the mainland from Mexico into southern California. Recent genetic research has shown that the Western Hemisphere cypresses are a well-supported clade that are quite separate from the Eastern Hemisphere species. For this reason a new genus, Hesperocyparis, has been erected for the New World cypresses while the Old World plants will retain the name Cupressus. We are currently leaving this plant as Cupressus until this change becomes widely accepted. We were given this plant by John Greenlee in the mid 1990s as a fastigiate form of Cupressus guadalupensis that he had selected from a seed lot that was grown by and from seed collected by David Amme. John had planted the original tree in his garden and in 2001 we took our first cuttings of this plant and the following year offered up our first crop of it. This was the first time this plant was to be sold and it lacked a cultivar name, so to help describe its unique erect form with blue-gray foliage and credit the man we got it from, we named it 'Greenlee's Blue Rocket' and listed it in our 2002 under this name.
Information displayed on this page about Cupressus guadalupensis 'Greenlee's Blue Rocket' is based on the research conducted about it in our library and from reliable online resources. We also note those observations we have made of this plant as it grows in the nursery's garden and in other gardens, as well how crops have performed in our nursery field. We will incorporate comments we receive from others, and welcome to hear from anyone who may have additional information, particularly if they share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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