We want to attempt to grow an Artbutus Menziesii (yes we are masochists) as a specimen tree, and am hoping for any feedback from those who have successfully achieved this (apparently herculean) feat in the Vancouver/South Surrey area? Site is not exactly coastal, but within 10 min. drive from the beach, hot and almost full sun. Am preparing a well dug, gravelly, rocky sloping berm to plant an @ 4' tall seedling on. There is heavy clay beneath though, which I fear may be a deal (and tree) killer. IS there hope for this or is are we looking at first-degree Artbuticide? Thank you in advance.
All you can do is try! Give an Artbutus Menziesii a nicely dug hole fill with good loamy, fertal soil, take good care of it and it will die. Give it a crack in you favorite retaining wall or rockery, ignore it, and it will thrive. Plus, it is a very messy tree. It sheds bark, leaves,twigs and anything else it can. Try a Star magnolia. Sort of similar; very showy in the spring; and grows well here. Just don't plant it near a rockery or retaining wall. It's roots distroy them.
A hole backfilled with nice soil markedly different from the soil that came out of the hole might kill any kind of tree. I see so much disease on Arbutus menziesii these days I am sure any planting of it is a gamble. How others in the vicinity look should give you a good idea of the potential for yours. Some places they still look pretty good, others there is a ton of blackening and blight.
Thanks for the feedback, Barbara, my thoughts precisely! It's just so tempting to try to grow one... and Ron B. also good points as usual. The few trees in the area I've seen are stunted & seem to be struggling, so this may be a kamikaze mission after all. Perhaps I shall revisit this little scheme. Thanks.
Actually Ron that was a typo... the entire time... and I never noticed! I can't claim to be so witty. AT least not on purpose...
I'm also in South Surrey and I've been trying to grow Arbutus menziesii for the past several years. My first attempt looked healthy and happy for 4 years and it even made it through the terrible 2008 winter with no sign of damage but then, suddenly, it decided to die for no apparent reason in early summer 2009. I'm trying again though. I have a neighbour less than 100 meters away with a very healthy 15-ft one in his front yard. If he can do it, so can I. His site is on the North side of the house, in his front yard, but very close to the street (away from the house) so it gets full sun. The plot is a bit of a berm (more like a raised bed) that doesn't really slope at all. My limited success was just a slightly raised border.
Arbutus menziesii or commonly known as Madrone form 2 mycorrhizal symbiots with their root system. The first is an Ericoid mycorrhizae that symbiots with all members of the Ericaceous genus and the second is what is known as an Arbutoid mycorrhizae. Arbutoid mycorrhizae have a symbiotic relationship with Arbutus species and their guild associates only and neither Arbutoid or Ericoid mycorrihizae is yet commercially available. Your best bet would be to take a day trip to West Vancouver and find a native Arbutus grove. Then collect a small vile " say 1/4 cup of damp soil " then return to your Arbutus and innoculate the root system with this soil. This will give you your best chance at growing an Arbutus and with the time spent on the North Shore you can observe their natural and prefered growing conditions. I hope this helps.
Thank you for the feedback Anna & MoDirt! Very enlightening. Fascinating info about the symbiotic mycorrhizae, that would be an important piece of the puzzle. I think I see a West Van picnic by the sea in my future, and some dirt harvesting. Who knew?! Thanks again for keeping the Arbutus dream alive.
