Garden Scheme
Plant library · Conifers & Evergreens
Cedrus atlantica
Atlas Cedar is a large, long-lived evergreen conifer with silvery-blue needles and a broad spreading habit. Reaching about 50 feet tall and 30 feet wide, it belongs in a generous, permanent position rather than a crowded foundation bed. Its strong outline and year-round foliage make it most useful as a single focal tree where the full canopy can remain visible.
Space Atlas Cedar 25 ft apart, measured center to center (7.6 m).
The mature spread is about 30 ft (9.1 m), so plants set at that distance grow together into a connected screen.
Treat 25 ft as a planning baseline — cultivar and local growing conditions shift the final footprint.
Give Atlas Cedar an open lawn, broad island bed, or outer edge of a large property, with the trunk set well back from buildings, overhead lines, driveways, and frequently used paths. The lower branches need room to extend without being cut back for circulation. Allow clear sightlines around the tree instead of packing shrubs beneath its widening canopy, and choose the planting position carefully because established trees are difficult to move.[1][2][3]
Plant Atlas Cedars 25 feet apart, center to center, when repeating them in a spacious landscape. A mature canopy can spread about 30 feet wide, so treat that interval as the minimum layout rhythm rather than a gap for additional woody plants. Reserve the surrounding ground as future canopy territory, keeping paths, seating areas, and smaller sun-loving beds beyond the eventual branch spread.
Place it in full sun, where its broad form can develop evenly and its blue-green foliage remains a clear visual feature. Low water needs suit a restrained irrigation plan once the tree is established. Use a well-drained planting area; avoid positions that collect standing water around the root zone.[1][2][3]
Evergreen needles keep Atlas Cedar present in the plan through every season, so its mature shade and visual mass should be accounted for even when nearby beds are dormant. The tree begins with a more pyramidal outline and broadens with age into a flatter-topped canopy with long horizontal branches. Leave enough open sky and lateral room for that transition.[1][2][3]
This is not a small-yard conifer: its eventual scale can overwhelm narrow side yards, front foundations, and compact patios. Choose a protected site away from strong winds, and avoid relying on regular branch removal to maintain clearance. Heavy snow can damage branches, making a location outside roof-snow drop zones and away from tight pedestrian routes more practical.[1][2]