edenhana

Rimu

One of New Zealand's iconic native conifers, extremely slow-growing and extremely long-lived, individual trees can live for over 600 years. Young rimu have a distinctive juvenile form, fine, hanging, bronze-green foliage that looks quite different from the more upright, denser canopy of a mature tree, so don't expect a young specimen to look anything like the adult form for many years. Essentially a legacy planting rather than a quick garden feature, most home gardeners will never see their own tree reach anything close to its eventual size, but it needs very little care once established.

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Sun
partial sun
Water
moderate
Spacing
600cm
Difficulty
beginner
Grows in
Whangārei / Northland, Auckland, Hamilton / Waikato, Tauranga / Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Napier / Hawke's Bay, New Plymouth / Taranaki, Palmerston North / Manawatū-Whanganui, Wellington, Nelson, Tasman, Blenheim / Marlborough, West Coast, Christchurch / Canterbury
Mature height
15m
Attracts wildlife
Kererū, Tūī
Evergreen
Yes

When to plant by region

In Whangārei / Northland, Auckland, Tauranga / Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Napier / Hawke's Bay: March-April and September-October. In Hamilton / Waikato, New Plymouth / Taranaki, Palmerston North / Manawatū-Whanganui, Wellington, Nelson, Tasman, Blenheim / Marlborough, West Coast and Christchurch / Canterbury: September-October.

Growing stages

  1. Planting & establishmentAutumn or spring

    • Choose a spot with moist, well-drained soil and part shade, particularly while the tree is young
    • Allow for significant eventual size when choosing a position, even though full growth takes many decades
    • Water regularly through the first couple of summers to help roots establish

  2. Juvenile growthFirst 5-10 years and beyond

    • Expect fine, hanging, bronze-green juvenile foliage that looks quite different from the mature tree, this is completely normal
    • Growth is extremely slow by garden standards; don't mistake this for poor health
    • Little maintenance is needed beyond occasional watering in dry spells while young

  3. Maturing form

    • Foliage and habit gradually change to the denser, more upright mature form over many years
    • Generally trouble-free, with few significant pests or diseases affecting home-garden specimens
    • Continue allowing space for the canopy to spread as the tree slowly thickens

  4. Long-term maturity

    • A genuinely multi-generational tree; even mature garden specimens are young by the standards of old-growth forest rimu
    • Fruit on mature trees is attractive to kererū and tūī, though this is typically many decades away
    • Needs essentially no ongoing care once well established, beyond keeping the base clear of competing weeds

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