Hinoki Crypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Gracilis'). Photo by : I. Hemingway

• Type: Needled Evergreen Coniferous tree or shrub.  Exotic plant, native to Japan.
• Uses: Dwarf, Medium, or Large specimen, screening, massed groupings, foundations, rock or Japanese gardens, depending on cultivar.
  

  Crippsi Hinoki Cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Crippsii'). Photo by: I. Hemingway

• Size: Species can reach 50′ to 120′ tall and 20′ to 25′ wide.  Size varies with cultivar; some cultivars mature to only 2 or 3 feet, others to 10′, 20′, 50′or more. Conical or narrowly conical in shape. Faster growing cultivars often have pendulous branches.
   
• Growth rate:  Slow (sometimes extremely slow) to moderate. Again, varies with cultivar.
• Light: Full sun to part shade is best. Will tolerate shade but will become open with time. This openness can be corrected, to some degree with pruning. Best sited out of the wind. Exposure to drying winds can desiccate the foliage, causing it to brown. Plants may become thin or die over time.
• Soil: Prefers moist, well-drained, humusy, acid soil. Avoid dry locations.
  

  Foliage of Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana'. Photo by: I. Hemingway

• Flowers: Monoecious and ornamentally insignificant.
• Fruit: Small, brown cones. Not particularly ornamental.
   
• Leaf: Scale-like, boat shaped, blunt tipped (obtuse). Handsome, fan-like, flattened foliage is dark green above and waxy below.  May droop at the tip. Leaves of some cultivars are gold or gold tipped.  Medium to fine texture in the landscape.
  

  Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Nana Lutea'. Photo by: I. Hemingway

• Bark: Shedding, reddish-brown.
   
• Cultivars: Over 200 cultivars.  Some favorites:

‘Crippsii’-Moderate grower with drooping, golden-green sprays. Becomes large, over 25′.

‘Filicoides-Fern like, dark green foliage. Slow growing to 8-10′.

‘Nana’-Dark green, compact form. Very slow to 3′.

‘Nana Lutea’- Another slow growing, compact form with greenish-gold foliage. 

‘Nana Gracillus’- Dark green, growing slowly to 6′. 

‘Little Ann’-Compact form with dark green, upright reaching branches.

Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Little Ann'. Photo by: I. Hemingway