Cryptomeria japonica 'Spiralis'
Common name: Dwarf Japanese cedar, Granny's Ringlets
Cryptomeria japonica 'Spiralis' is a slow-growing, semi-dwarf cultivar of Japanese cedar. It has a mounding habit when young, but becomes more upright as it matures. C. japonica 'Spiralis' grows to about 2 - 2.5 metres (6 - 8 feet) tall in 10 years.
C. japonica 'Spiralis' has unique foliage. The mid-green-coloured needles spiral themselves around the branches, and form twisted ropes of ringlet-like foliage, hence the trademark name 'Granny's Ringlets'.
This cultivar is thought to have originated in Japan around the mid-1800s. The name Cryptomeria japonica 'Spiralis' was first published by Siebold and Zuccarini in Flora Japonica in 1844.
'Granny's Ringlets' may be found in Bed 56 in the Heather Garden. It was planted there in 2008. The photos were taken in February 2023.
Text and photos by Kumi Sutcliffe