Description
Fir Canaan tree is one of the most popular Christmas trees. They grow best on fertile, moist, well drained soils. Once they are established, they can thrive in a sandy area too. Unlike Fraser fir trees, they can handle wet soil. Canaan fir are an open, pyramidal tree, with stiff, horizontal branches, ending in stout, yellowish-brown, fuzzy twigs, with crowded shiny foliage.
Fir Canaan needles are a lustrous dark green from above, silvery on the underside, aromatic, narrow and straight. They grow 1/2″ to 1″ long with a notched tip. On young Canaan fir they are scattered, spirally arranged in rows and cover all sides of the branch, as the tree ages they just grow on the upper side of the branch. Buds on the tree are small resinous and brown in the winter. They are late to break bud in the spring, so this makes them perfect for areas with a high risk of spring frost damage. The bark on the Canaan fir is rough and a cinnamon-red when the tree is older. Young trees have a smooth, gray, resinous bark. The main pests that affect the Cannan fir are the balsam wooly adelgid and spruce budworm. They can be controlled with spraying.
Fir Canaan Tree, or Canaan Fir Trees
Scientific Name: Abies balsamea phanerolipsis
Zone: 3-6
Mature Height: 40-60 ft, rarely they can grow to 100′
Mature Width: 20-30 ft
Growth Rate: Slow, about a foot a year
Soil: Moist, fertile, well-drained soil – sandy soil once established is okay
Drought Tolerance: Intolerant
Flood Tolerance: Poor
Sun Requirements: Sun
Fall Color: None
Wildlife Value: Deer browse the greenery. Squirrels, chipmunks and other rodents eat the seeds.
