Canadian Hemlock
Plant Type: Evergreen, bare-root
Zones: 3-7
Soil Type: Loamy & Sandy Soils
Site Selection: Full Sun, Partial Sun, Shade
Mature Height & Width: 40-60' Height and 20-30' Spread
Growth Rate: Moderate - 12-24" per year once established
Moisture Requirements: Average
Canadian Hemlock
Tsuga canadensis
Canadian Hemlocks are very versatile, long-lived conifers. They can live to be several hundred years old. The trees are fragrant and have small needles that are dark green on top and light green underneath. This evergreen can be pruned to any shape or height and make a thick privacy screen or living wall by planting 20 feet apart. When left alone, the trees reach for the sky and are a towering specimen reaching up to 60 feet in height. Canadian Hemlocks are not terribly drought or wind resistant so please take note of the location where you intend to plant them. These hard to find seedlings grow best in well-drained locations similar to what the firs prefer. This is one of the most shade tolerant of all conifers.
The Canadian Hemlock is also known as the Eastern Hemlock. This conifer can be pruned to any shape or height. A versatile evergreen which can be left to grow into a tree or pruned into a hedge form. The soft branches and needles have a light and fragrant scent. The Canadian Hemlock does not handle heavier soils such as clay very well, but rather prefers cool, moist and fertile soil.
Common Uses:
- Privacy screen or living wall
- Evergreen
- Good wildlife value
Like most conifers, the Canadian Hemlock provides excellent nesting and roosting habitat as well as cover for a variety of birds. Warblers in particular enjoy nesting is this evergreen. The seeds of the cones are eaten by many different birds and small mammals. Large Canadian Hemlocks can be climbed by small black bear cubs. In northeastern Minnesota, black bear mothers and cubs spent more than 95 percent of the time in April and May within 600 feet of either an eastern hemlock or an eastern white pine larger than 20 inches in diameter. In winter, the foliage is browsed by deer, moose and snowshoe hare.