Pinus flexilis 'Cesarini Blue'

Sapphire gems; the pristine waters of Crater Lake; the Internet Explorer logo; jeans; mailboxes; the eyes of Frank Sinatra and Cameron Diaz; the clear, early morning, winter skies in Colorado; Forget-Me-Nots….

The common thread tying together all the items on this list is, obviously, their blue color – blue to the point of being iconic.

Pinus flexilis Cesarini Blue would be an appropriate addition to this list.Introduced to the nursery trade by Joe Cesarini of Maryland because of this rich, consistent blue color, it is the bluest of all the Pinus flexilis varieties. As remarkable as this attribute is, however, to ignore this plants other wonderful characteristics, is to sell it short in terms of its versatility in the plant world.

In contrast to some of its faster growing “relatives” in the flexilis species, Cesarini Blue is a slower grower, reaching a height of only 6’-8’ in 10 years. This makes it very suitable in a wide range of landscape settings from large planters, to smaller yards, to larger landscapes.

Cesarini Blue also has long, soft needles that are characteristic of Pinus flexilis, or Rocky Mountain Limber Pine. These long, soft needles are made even more desirable, of course, with their rich blue coloring.

In addition to its wonderful blue color, the long soft needles, and its slow growing, full-bodied, compact form, Pinus flexilis Cesarini Blue is easily grown in a variety of climates from zones 3-8.
All of these characteristics – color, form, habit, tactile appeal, and hardiness, make this attractive, versatile plant a great choice for year long appeal, in any landscape setting.

Pinus flexilis 'Pendula'

What do you get when you cross a blue wave and a limber pine? The answer, Pinus flexilis ‘Pendula’.

Long steel blue needles are held in clusters of five on this one-of-a-kind pine. Flexilis pines are known for their extremely flexible limbs that better recover from heavy snow loads in their native higher elevations. Hence the name, limber pine.

That same habit makes ‘Pendula’ an outstanding garden selection. Either staked for height or allowed to be a ground cover, this cultivated variety produces cascading new growth each year like an endless ocean of waves.

The blue-green needles create a colorful wave that is a beautiful lower growing complement to striking upright growing red-leaved trees like Acer palmatum ‘Nuresagi’.