Tree · Pinaceae
Deodar Cedar
Cedrus deodara
Hand it full sun and soil that drains, and this Himalayan cedar turns into a soft, sweeping evergreen that sticks around for decades.
Full sun
Every 7–14 days
USDA 6–9
30–50 ft · 9.1–15.2 m
Overview
So what is a deodar cedar? It's a fast-growing evergreen from the western Himalayas, and one of the few real cedars in the genus Cedrus. The needles are soft and run from blue-green to gray-green, sitting in little tufts along branches that arch outward, and the top leader nods over to give the whole thing that weeping look. With room to grow, it gets to 30 to 50 feet (9 to 15 meters) tall and spreads almost as wide.
Here's the catch: this is a tree for open space, not a pot or a tight corner. It wants full sun and soil that drains, and once it's settled in it handles dry spells without any fuss. The needle tips are sharp, so it's worth a little distance, but honestly it doesn't ask for much once it's rooted.
Plenty of gardeners use it as a specimen tree or a screen, and a few cultivars take it colder than the wild tree can go. The one thing that'll really trip you up? Planting it where water pools, because soggy feet are the thing it just won't put up with.
Care
The short version: full sun and free-draining soil are what it's all about. Water it well while it's young, then let it look after itself, give it room to spread, and keep it out of anywhere the ground stays wet.
Light
Pop a deodar cedar in full sun and you'll get the densest, best-looking tree. It'll take partial sun or light shade too, so don't panic if your spot isn't perfect, but the canopy gets a bit thin and the shape opens up where the light's short.
Water
Water it regularly through the first year or two while the roots stretch out, soaking deeply every 7 to 14 days. After that? It turns genuinely drought tolerant and barely needs a thing, and the real worry flips over to overwatering, which is what brings on root rot.
Soil
It's not picky about texture, growing in anything from sandy to clay loam, and it's happy across a wide pH of 5.5 to 7.5. The one rule that really counts is drainage, because soil that stays soggy is going to rot the roots.
Temperature
This is a tough one, holding up across a big range from about 0°F to 100°F (-18°C to 38°C). The hardy cultivars push the cold end even further, though a late frost can still nip the tender new growth come spring.
Humidity
Plain outdoor air suits it just fine, so there's no humidity number to chase. What matters more is good air movement around the branches, since still, damp air is exactly what lets tip blight get a foothold.
Feeding
Give it a light feed in spring with a balanced slow-release tree fertilizer, once a season is enough. An established tree that's growing well needs little or no feeding and gets by just fine on what the soil already has.
Pruning
This tree barely needs pruning to keep its shape, which is a nice break. In late winter, just take out any dead, damaged, or crossing branches, plus anything cold or tip blight has killed, and otherwise leave its natural sweeping form be.
Repotting
As a landscape tree it's hardly ever a container candidate, and an established one is best left alone. If you're keeping a young one in a pot, only bump it up when roots circle the inside, growth stalls, or water runs straight through without soaking in.
Size & spacing
360–600 in (914–1524 cm) tall
When to plant
When's the best time to plant a deodar cedar? Go for the mild stretches of the year. Spring or fall both work, while the soil's still easy to dig and the heat or hard cold has backed off, and that gives the roots a whole season to dig in before the weather shifts.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: spring or fall
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 6–9
Temperature: down to -23°C
Troubleshooting
A healthy deodar cedar won't give you much grief, and when something does go wrong it usually comes back to wet soil or a tree that's stressed. Keep an eye on the branches and the canopy for the first hints. Catch it early and you can usually sort it out before a limb, or the whole tree, is a goner.
A thinning, wilting canopy on a tree in wet ground
Soggy soil usually points to Phytophthora root and crown rot, which smothers and rots the roots from underneath. Dig in near the base and you might find dark, mushy roots where firm white ones should be. Once the rot's far along there's no saving it, so fix the drainage, ease off the water, and replant somewhere the ground never stays wet.
Fix:
- Improve drainage or relocate to a well-drained site
- Reduce irrigation
- Remove severely affected trees
Flagging branches, weeping resin, and bare cases hanging in the limbs
A stressed tree tends to pull in the deodar weevil, a bark beetle that bores in and leaves resin bleeding from the wounds, with bagworms and borers piling on. Look for small holes, sawdust, and those hanging spindle-shaped bags that give bagworms away. Most attacks land on trees already worn down by drought, so the best defense is steady water, a layer of mulch, and pruning out and burning anything infested.
Fix:
- Keep trees vigorous with proper watering and mulch
- Remove and destroy infested branches and bagworm bags
- Consult local extension for targeted insect management
Browning branch tips and dying-back twigs
Usually this is tip blight, brought on by the Sphaeropsis or Diplodia fungus, which moves in after wet weather and gets going right at the ends of the branches. A late frost can fake it too, since it kills the tender new growth the same way. Cut the affected tips well below the dead wood, wipe down your pruners between cuts, and keep water off the foliage.
Fix:
- Prune out and dispose of affected tips well below the dead tissue
- Disinfect tools between cuts
- Improve air circulation and avoid overhead watering
Toxicity
Good news: a deodar cedar is safe to have around the house. There's nothing in it that hurts pets, livestock, or people, and it doesn't show up on the ASPCA poison lists. The only thing to watch for is those sharp-pointed needles, which can prick small hands working close to a young tree.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
It's totally fine around cats, since there's nothing in the needles or wood that'll poison them. A cat that chews on a branch might cough up a little plant matter, but that's the sharp tips doing it, not a toxin.
Dogs None
No toxic compounds here, so a dog can sniff and brush past the tree without a care. Gnawing on a fallen twig won't hurt, though a mouthful of needles might bring on a bit of drool.
Horses Safe
There's nothing about a deodar cedar that threatens a horse grazing nearby. The tree's got no poison in it, so go ahead and plant it around paddocks and pasture edges.
Rabbits Safe
Rabbits are in no danger from this tree at all. The needles aren't toxic, and a curious nibble does no harm.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep can share the ground with a deodar cedar safely. It carries no toxin that bothers the stomach or the nerves.
Birds Safe
Birds can nest and perch in the dense branches without any risk. The tree's non-toxic, and its cones and cover make a welcome part of the garden for them.
People Safe
There's nothing poisonous about a deodar cedar for people. The needles do end in sharp points, so the only real caution is handling young plants with care.
No special handling needed; needles are sharp-pointed so handle young plants with care.
Varieties
Beyond the wild tree, there's a handful of named picks that stand out for taking the cold better or for a different color and shape. These are the ones you're most likely to bump into at a nursery.
Karl Fuchs
This one's about as cold-hardy as they come, holding up to zone 6 with steely blue-green needles on graceful, drooping branches.
Shalimar
Grown from seed out of the Shalimar Gardens, this blue-green form takes the cold better than the everyday species.
Kashmir
It's hardier than the species to around zone 6, which puts it among the best true cedars you can grow in a southern garden.
Pendula
A weeping form whose branches spill strongly toward the ground for a soft, draped shape.
Aurea
A golden form that pushes bright yellow new growth in spring before easing toward green as it ages.
How to propagate
Want to make more? You can raise a deodar cedar from seed, or go the route the nurseries use for the fancy forms. Each one fits a different goal, and one of them takes a whole lot more patience and skill than the other.
SeedModerate
Fall to spring after cold stratification · Several years
The species comes up pretty easily from seed once it's had a spell of cold stratification, which you can kick off anytime from fall to spring. Just don't be in a hurry, since it takes several years to turn into a real tree, and seedlings vary in form and color, so no two come out quite the same.
GraftingDemanding
Late winter · 1 to 2 years
The named cultivars, the weeping and golden forms included, get grafted in late winter, because seed won't reliably pass their traits along. It's demanding work that takes 1 to 2 years to settle, which is why grafted plants cost more at the nursery.
Myths
If a tree's called a cedar, it's a true cedar like the deodar.
Only the trees in the genus Cedrus, and the deodar's one of them, count as true cedars. Loads of North American trees borrow the name without earning it, like eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) and northern white cedar (Thuja occidentalis), and they sit in entirely different genera, so they aren't cedars at all.