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Podocarpus macrophyllus,
Chinese Podocarpus

Chinese Podocarpus is a versatile plant often used for hedges but can be trained into a nice small tree. Most landscapes in the eastern part of the country with old plants are sunny, dry places with no irrigation. Plants grow more slowly and have a looser appearance when grown in shade. They grow as shrubs on the north side of a tall building with little or no direct sun. It will tolerate a wide variety of well-drained, acidic soils. Not a tree or shrub to plant in wet soils. This is a tough tree, adaptable to urban conditions and should be used much more extensively as a street tree. Magnesium deficiency can occur on excessively well-drained soils.

It should be used more in areas of poor soils and restricted rooting space. Unfortunately, most people choose to trim the tree into a column or hedge, so not many have seen the true beauty of the tree. It will make an attractive specimen, street or parking lot tree, even for the smallest soil space in a downtown planting pit. Roots are not a problem in restricted-soil planting areas and usually do not lift sidewalks. Pollen from males trees causes significant allergies in certain people; females produce no pollen.