Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte Hinoki Cypress

Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte is a slow-growing evergreen dwarf conifer with tangled golden green foliage. It’s a hardy choice for low-maintenance rockeries, containers, banks, or slopes.

Chamaecyparis Obtusa conifers are commonly known as Hinoki Cypresses. They are native to the Far East, including Japan and Taiwan’s forest regions, but in gardens they are often used for topiary or cloud trees because their drooping fan-shaped foliage is forgiving and takes well to clipping.

The Hinoki Cypress Gitte cultivar was first discovered as a mutation of Hinoki Cypress Tsatsumi Gold in the Netherlands. It grows in an erratic mound of dense, tangled golden-green foliage that’s created by its red-brown twisted stems. Its sprays of scale-like foliage are soft and excellent cover for insects.

Because it’s a slow-growing dwarf evergreen, Hinoki Cypress Gitte is a good choice of plant for containers and low-maintenance gardens. It needs barely any care and produces a colourful year-round display.

Height and Spread of Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte
Dwarf Hinoki Cypress Gitte reaches just 50 centimetres tall and spreads over a metre within 15 - 20 years.

How Hardy is Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte
This is a hardy evergreen if it receives full sun and well-drained soil. It tolerates minus temperatures, some drought, and pollution.

How To Use Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte
Low-growing evergreen conifers are always in demand for rockeries, slopes, banks, front gardens and wildlife-friendly low maintenance spaces. Gitte ticks all these boxes but brings variety in the form of its haphazard, textured foliage and bright golden green shades.

It also suits well-watered and fed containers on a deck, patio, or balcony. Its small eventual size means it won’t outgrow its welcome and because it does not produce messy flowers or fruits, clean-up is minimal. Gitte is a versatile and easy-going ‘backbone’ structure plant for all garden styles.

How To Care For Chamaecyparis Obtusa Gitte
Hinoki Cypress Gitte is easy to grow.
It needs full sun to produce the brightest colours and well-drained soils of any type. It copes well with exposed spots, but harsh winds may damage delicate new shoots, so a sheltered position is best. No pruning is required.
Container-grown Gitte needs regular water and fertiliser during the warm months. Brown tips occur if its roots dry out. Be sure to raise the container up on feet or bricks for adequate drainage.