A Pine Worth Pining For

Japanese red pines are relative strangers to the Minnesota garden but that needn’t be the case–at least in the Twin Cities they have proven reliably hardy. Today’s Plant of the Week, Pinus densiflora “Dragon’s Eye”, is a unique cultivar propagated for its unusual variegated foliage that lends the tree a frosted appearance. It grows into an irregularly upright specimen of 30′ with a 15-20′ spread. This is an excellent candidate for a conversation piece or focal point that is particularly at-home in Asian-styled gardens.