| General Description | A slow-growing, large sized evergreen shrub with a columnar form. It has scale-like foliage that ranges in colour from grey-green to silver-blue adding interest through the year. |
| Shape | Upright and narrowly pyramidal in form. |
| Landscape | Typically used as a vertical accent plant. |
| Propagation | Cuttings should be taken from a young specimen but can be taken from a mature branch on the lower portion of the plant. Cuttings are best taken in autumn and root well in a peat moss and sand growing mixture under mist and bottom heat. Hormone may also be applied to stimulate root growth.
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| Cultivation | Prefers moist, well drained slightly acidic soils however, can tolerate neutral, sandy, chalk, clay, and loam soils. It is best planted in a protected location free from drying winds and flourishes in very light shade. |
| Pests | In dry conditions watch for spider mites. Aphids and shoot boring moths may be problematic in normal growing conditions. |
| Habitat | Horticultural origin. |
| Bark/Stem Description | Fibrous, silvery brown to reddish brown, divided into thick and rounded edged plates separated with deep irregular furrows on mature plants. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description | The buds are 2-4 mm in size and are a blueish-black in colour. |
| Leaf Description | Silver-blue scale-like needles that retain their colour year round both adaxil and abaxil: the leaf scales are closely appressed. |
| Fruit Description | Numerous small globose cones, ripening from blue to brown, about 1 cm across, 8 scaled and containing 2-4 seeds each: infrequent in occurrence. |
| Colour Description | Green to bluish-silver foliage and reddish brown bark that is usually completely obscured by dense foliage.
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| Texture Description | A finely textured foliage plant, but rather dramatic in form. |
