How should pine and cypress be cared for in winter to survive the cold safely?

Pine and cypress, together with bamboo and plum, are known as the “Three Friends of Winter”. They are widely distributed in southern North China and the East China region, and are also commonly used as ornamental garden trees. So, how do pine and cypress overwinter?

1. How do pine and cypress overwinter?

Pine and cypress overwinter by adjusting the color of their leaves. Although their leaves are still green in winter, the color is much poorer than in spring, summer, and autumn. This is because winter temperatures are low, the production of chlorophyll in the leaves is restricted, while anthocyanins increase relatively, so the leaves take on a somewhat reddish hue. The color change can weaken photosynthesis in the leaves, slowing the tree's physiological activity and thereby ensuring that pine and cypress survive the winter safely.

2. What are the propagation methods for pine and cypress?

Sowing: seeds that have undergone stratification treatment generally begin to germinate and emerge about 10 days after sowing, with peak emergence at around 20 days, and the nursery germination rate can reach 70%—80%. To help the seeds germinate and emerge, keep the soil in the seed layer consistently moist; before sowing, be sure to water thoroughly to the bottom. If the soil is not excessively dry before the seedlings emerge, it is best not to water over the top, so as to avoid lowering the soil temperature and causing surface soil compaction, which is unfavorable for emergence.

3. The symbolic meaning of pine and cypress

People personify the pine tree and use the pine as a comparison for virtue, practicing it earnestly to improve their own moral character. At the same time, it symbolizes a person who is unyielding, of extraordinary perseverance, and very strong; the pine is widely regarded as an auspicious tree species.

Through the ages, countless people of high ideals and literary figures have praised the pine in song and celebrated it in poetry. They praise the pine's solemn dignity and proud, towering spirit; they celebrate the pine's endurance through cold without decline and its evergreen nature through all four seasons. The pine is the longest-lived tree species in the world, enjoying a lifespan of ten thousand years. As the saying goes: a thousand-year turtle, a ten-thousand-year pine. In Chinese folk customs, birthday wishes often include the phrase “May your fortune be as boundless as the East Sea's endless waters, and your longevity as the ever-green pine of the Southern Mountain.”

Su Dongpo, the great literary figure of the Song Dynasty, loved pine trees all his life. In his youth, he planted pine trees every year, and over more than ten years, the pine trees he planted with his own hands numbered as many as tens of thousands. In the Dongji there is a record: “In my youth I was quite knowledgeable about planting pines; I planted tens of thousands with my own hands, all now fit for beams and pillars.” When he was demoted to Huangzhou, he regarded himself as an old farmer and planted pines around his residence, taking delight in “pine trees flourishing everywhere.”