WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Pinus roxburghii, WUCOLS IV

How often to water chir pine in California

In July in the Central Valley, established chir pine in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 47 gallons a week. Chir pine is a fast-growing Himalayan conifer with long, drooping needles, a tall straight trunk and thick, furrowed bark. It comes from warm, dry mountain slopes and wants full sun and sandy or gravelly soil that drains fast. It is not a desert pine, though, and it needs deep soakings through California summers.

TreeRated for 6 of 6 zones

How often to water chir pine, month by month

Your city
Canopy width
10 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for chir pine and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area under the branches, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure canopy width

A tree with its canopy width marked across the widest branches and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the branches, from the tips of the outer leaves on one side to the tips on the other. A tape works, or pace it out.

Water the whole circle under the branches, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that circle.

A wider canopy means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While the tree is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 6 inches down under the outer branches of a young chir pine signals that it needs a deep soak
  • New shoots that stay short and needles that look dull in midsummer can follow a dry root zone
  • A thinning, yellowing crown on a tree in a lawn or a poorly drained spot warrants a check for Armillaria root rot
  • Sticky shoots crowded with aphids point to a pest problem rather than a watering one

How to water it

  • Water a young tree over its root ball and a ring beyond it with drip or a slow hose, keeping water off the trunk
  • Soak the soil about 18 inches deep, then let the top several inches dry before the next soak
  • Plant in full sun in sandy or gravelly loam, and avoid low spots where water stands
  • Keep lawn sprinklers away from the trunk, since frequent shallow watering keeps the root crown wet
  • Move emitters toward the canopy edge as the tree grows, since a mature tree can spread 40 feet

Through the seasons

A newly planted chir pine needs deep soakings through its first two or three summers while roots spread into the native soil. Established trees still need deep summer soakings, spaced so the soil dries between them. It stays evergreen and grows quickly in warm weather. Winter rain covers the cool months on the coast and in the Central Valley, so irrigation can usually pause then. Desert gardens need soil checks through long dry winter spells. Moderate water is the WUCOLS rating on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley, on the south coast and in South Inland. The high desert and the low desert carry the same moderate water rating.

In pots

Chir pine grows fast and becomes a large tree, so a container suits only a young seedling for a season or two. Use a deep pot and a gritty, fast-draining mix. Check the mix 2 to 3 inches down every few days in summer, more often in inland heat, and water until it drains through. Empty the saucer each time. Plant it out while it is young, before the roots circle, and water less in winter when growth slows.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
2.67gal per sq ft in JulyModerate water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
17.11 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.4JAN0.65FEB1.09MAR1.52APR2.08MAY2.48JUN2.67JUL2.39AUG1.8SEP1.18OCT0.56NOV0.34DEC0.761.52.33.00.4JFM1.52AMJ2.67JAS1.18OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 2.67 in Jul, 17.11 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Chir Pine: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.370.40.780.780.740.78
Feb0.530.650.810.870.930.93
Mar0.871.091.151.31.461.52
Apr1.181.521.41.611.891.95
May1.462.081.611.952.392.45
Jun1.612.481.742.292.852.79
Jul1.612.671.982.513.042.85
Aug1.492.391.862.332.792.6
Sep1.241.81.491.862.142.08
Oct0.871.181.151.331.461.49
Nov0.470.560.840.90.930.96
Dec0.310.340.650.680.650.68
Year1217.1115.518.4121.2721.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated moderate water in the Central Valley, like chir pine. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Citrus TreesCitrus spp.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyJapanese MapleAcer palmatummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAvocado TreesPersea americanamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyMagnolia TreesMagnolia grandiflora ssp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPalm TreesSyagrus romanzoffiana (Arecastrum romanzoffianum)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyApple TreesMalus spp. (edible) e.g, 'Anna' (low chill variety for low desert)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPeach TreesPrunus spp. ediblemoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPersimmon TreesDiospyros kakimoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAmur MapleAcer ginnalamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyFernleaf MapleAcer japonicummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBox ElderAcer negundomoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyNorway MapleAcer platanoidesmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed MapleAcer rubrummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyChinese MapleAcer truncatummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed BuckeyeAesculus paviamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed HorsechestnutAesculus x carneamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in July

Similar plants that need less water 16

Rated lower than chir pine in the Central Valley. Worth a look for a new bed or a lawn replacement.

Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFig TreesFicus carica ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPomegranate TreesPunica granatumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyEucalyptusEucalyptus polyanthemoslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPine TreesPinus canariensislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTexas Red OakQuercus buckleyilow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPortuguese OakQuercus faginealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySoapbark TreeQuillaja saponarialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyNecklace TreeSophora affinislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBailey AcaciaAcacia baileyanalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver WattleAcacia dealbatalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen WattleAcacia decurrenslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes chir pine, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water chir pine in summer?

In July, established chir pine in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days in the Central Valley, about every 11 days on the south coast and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does chir pine need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established chir pine needs about 6.8 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 27 gallons a day under a 20 foot canopy. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for chir pine change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates chir pine separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, moderate water in the Central Valley zone, moderate water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

How big does chir pine get in California?

In landscapes it can reach about 80 feet tall and 40 feet wide, though it grows much taller in the Himalayas. It grows fast, so give it open space away from buildings. Plan its watering zone around the full mature canopy.

Is chir pine salt tolerant?

It is rated highly salt tolerant, which helps near the coast. Salt tolerance does not lower its need for deep summer water. Deep, spaced soakings also push salts below the roots better than light ones.

Can chir pine grow in a lawn?

It can, but frequent lawn watering keeps the soil wet near the trunk, and this pine is susceptible to Armillaria root rot. Keep turf back from the trunk and give the tree its own deep soakings. Let the soil under it dry between waterings.

Does chir pine cause allergies?

Its pollen is listed as an allergy hazard. Site it away from patios and windows if anyone in the household is sensitive.

Is chir pine fire resistant?

Its thick bark helps it survive ground fires in its native range. That does not make the tree fireproof, since its resin and dry needles burn. Keep fallen needles cleared near buildings.

More plant watering guides

Harry Lauder's Walking StickBlue China FirLeopard's BaneBronze FennelRaywood AshVancouver Gold GenistaBaby's BreathCreeping Baby's Breath

Sources