Pencil Pine

Pencil Pine 'Nitschke's Needles' (Cupressus sempervirens 'Nitschke's Needles') is an Australian bred selection of the Italian cypress chosen for one thing: it stays genuinely narrow. Expect around 5m tall and under 1m wide in a home garden, with fine dark green foliage packed tightly to a single upright form. That makes it the plant to reach for when you want vertical structure in a bed only a metre deep.

Why you'll love it

• Narrow without maintenance. It holds under 1m across on its own, not from a ladder and a hedge trimmer every spring.
• A realistic height. Around 5m in a garden, which screens a fence and a first floor window without dominating the street.
• Roots that stay put. Non invasive, so it suits a driveway edge, paving or a boundary wall.
• Tough across dry Australia. Frost hardy, heat tolerant, drought tolerant once established, wind firm and happy in poor soil.
• Formal structure, no fuss. Evergreen, dense, and it takes light shaping.

Where it works best

Driveways and avenues. A matched row is the classic use. Space them 1m apart for a solid vertical screen, or 2m to 3m apart for a rhythm of separate columns.

Screening in a narrow bed. At 1m apart the columns meet and give a formal screen in a strip most screening plants cannot fit. Keep them 60cm off a fence so air moves behind.

Entries, pots and topiary. A pair either side of a gate gives instant formality, and the tight habit takes shaping well. Use a container at least 500mm across.

Growing Pencil Pine in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, with plenty of air around the plant. This is a Mediterranean plant at heart and it belongs in warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean and arid gardens: Adelaide, Melbourne, Canberra, Perth and inland New South Wales and Victoria all suit it. Humid tropical and subtropical gardens are not its climate.

Soil. Drainage matters far more than fertility. It grows happily in stony, sandy or poor ground and sulks in heavy wet clay. On clay, plant on a raised mound with gypsum and coarse compost worked through.

Water and feed. Water deeply once a week through the first two summers, then only in prolonged dry weather. Overwatering an established plant does more damage than drought. Feed lightly in early spring.

Pruning and staking. Almost none is required. For a crisper column, shear lightly in late spring and stay within green growth, because conifers do not reshoot from bare inner wood. Stake advanced plants for the first year.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in four sizes: 200mm pots in packs of six, then 25L, 45L and 100L. The 200mm packs are the sensible way to plant a long driveway run: fast to establish, and the saving over a dozen plants is considerable. The 25L and 45L sizes suit a pair at an entry, and the 100L is semi advanced.

Conifers arrive thirsty, so water them the day they land and again two days later. Plants are packed to travel upright and delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Advanced and large stock is freighted at cost. Growth is slow and steady, which is exactly why the shape holds. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Pencil pine varieties and care in Australia
• Browse the full conifer range
• How to grow and care for conifers
• Using plants to make a statement entrance

Common questions

How tall will it get?

Around 5m in a garden over many years. Older Italian cypress in Europe reach far more, but this is a slow, narrow selection and 5m is the realistic figure to plan around.

How far apart should I plant them?

1m apart for a continuous formal screen. For an avenue where the columns should read individually, 2m to 3m apart looks better.

Will it grow in Brisbane or Darwin?

It is not the right plant for humid tropical and subtropical gardens. It is at its best in warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean and dry inland climates where summers are drier and air moves freely.