Horstmann Blue Atlas Cedar

Horstmann Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica 'Horstmann') is a compact German selection of Blue Atlas Cedar, with powder-blue needles held in tight, bright clusters on ascending branches. It adds 6 to 8 inches a year and forms a broad upright small tree, roughly 12 feet tall and 8 feet wide at garden maturity, in zones 6 through 9.

The difference from the standard Blue Atlas Cedar is scale. You get the same powder-blue color on a slower, smaller tree, so a garden without room for a full-size cedar can still have one with real presence. Each plant branches a little differently and develops its own outline. If you would rather have cream variegation than solid blue, look at Sahara Ice Atlas Cedar.

Use it as an accent or specimen where it can be seen all year: at the corner of the house, in a front-yard bed, or as the anchor of a winter garden. Give it the full 8 feet of width and plant it where it will stay, since cedars are difficult to transplant. With age the bark breaks into boxy plates, and the needles carry an aromatic oil.

• Light: full sun
• Water: regular water until established, then drought tolerant
• Soil: clay, loam, or sand with good drainage, acid or alkaline
• Tolerance: heat, humidity, pollution and moderate salt
• Care: brush heavy snow off the branches, since a wet load can break them

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