Is Siberian Cypress deer resistant?
Microbiota decussata
About Siberian Cypress
A rare thing: a genuinely deer-proof evergreen groundcover that takes shade. Almost every other evergreen at that height is a juniper, and junipers want full sun. It looks like a low spreading conifer, lacy and bright green through summer, turning bronze or purple in winter. That colour change alarms people the first year. It is normal and it greens up again in spring. The one hard requirement is drainage. It will not tolerate wet feet and rots quickly in heavy clay. It also dislikes reflected heat, so a hot dry bank in the south is the wrong place despite the drainage being right. Cool shade with moving air is where it does best.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 5.5 to 7
- Drainage
- Well drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Fertility
- Low
- Spacing
- 35 to 47 in apart
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Maintenance
- Low
Tolerances and uses
- Drought
- Moderate
- Salt
- Low
- Pollinators
- None
- Evergreen
Similar to Siberian Cypress
Other groundcovers with the same deer rating.
- Allegheny SpurgePachysandra procumbensZones 5–9Rarely damaged
- BarrenwortEpimedium sp.Zones 4–8, genus rangeRarely damaged
- BearberryArctostaphylos uva-ursiZones 3–7Rarely damaged
- Bishop's WeedAegopodium podagrariaZones 3–10Rarely damaged
- BugleweedAjuga reptansZones 3–10Rarely damaged
- Lily of the ValleyConvallaria majalisZones 3–7Rarely damaged
Where Siberian Cypress grows
Hardy across most of these 48 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
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Every list Siberian Cypress belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Siberian Cypress
- Is Siberian Cypress deer resistant?
- Siberian Cypress (Microbiota decussata) is rated Rarely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Deer almost always leave this alone.
- What hardiness zones does Siberian Cypress grow in?
- Siberian Cypress is hardy in USDA zones 3 to 7. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Siberian Cypress grow in shade?
- Yes. Siberian Cypress tolerates part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- How big does Siberian Cypress get?
- Mature height is roughly 12–18 in. Growth rate is slow.