Boulevard Cypress

Light Needs

Partial Sun to Full Sun

(At Least 5 Hours of Direct Sunlight)

Mature Height

5 - 12 Feet

Mature Spread

2-4 Feet

Growing Zones

4 to 8

Boulevard Cypress’s silvery to bluish-green needles provide year-round interest to landscapes. With mounds of soft, feathery leaves, this dwarf evergreen shrub grows to 5 to 12 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide. This is a Sawara cypress, otherwise known as Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Boulevard’, and grows well in zones 4-8. 

Native to Japan, this low-maintenance evergreen is drought tolerant, deer resistant, and pollinator friendly. With its unique pyramidal form and plush, showy foliage, this slow-growing shrub provides color and texture to landscapes. Plant Boulevard as a specimen/focal point to highlight its plumy foliage and unique pyramidal shape, or use it in borders and hedges to provide privacy, a windbreak, and a starter home for small critters and birds. 

Boulevard Cypress Care

Boulevard cypress thrives in partial to full sun. Plant it in well-drained, moist, slightly acidic soil with a pH of 6.5 to 7.0. Amend poorly draining soil with compost to prevent fungal diseases such as root rot. To avoid water loss due to evaporation, apply a 2-3-inch ring of mulch. After planting, water regularly, providing about an inch per week. Reduce watering once established. Apply a balanced, granular, slow-release fertilizer, such as a 10-10-10, during the spring.

Boulevard cypress benefits from careful pruning. Avoid cuts into old wood, which produce no new growth. To maintain this evergreen’s natural shape and size, trim overgrowth during the spring and vary the length of branches to keep an organic shape. Later during the summer, trim any damaged, diseased, dead, or crossed branches. Doing so promotes good health by improving aeration and access to sunlight. 

While superb in any landscape, a juvenile Boulevard cypress can also be planted as a specimen in a container. Once the shrub outgrows the pot, transplant it into the ground. 

Boulevard Cypress Spacing

Whether providing accent as a specimen or privacy as a hedge, Boulevard cypress should be appropriately spaced for good aeration and access to sunlight. Allow 3 to 6 feet between plants when growing Boulevard in a hedge and at least 3 feet when mass planting.