Pinus mugo ‘Carstens’ (‘Carstens Wintergold’) Mugo Pine

Carstens, or Carstens Wintergold, is a slow-growing, dwarf Mugo pine that turns bright golden-yellow in the winter, rivaling the color of Chief Joseph Lodgepole pine. It was named after Erwin Carstens, who discovered it in Germany in the early 1980s. In 2012, its spectacular winter color and hardiness won the prestigious Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.
This beautiful plant grows very slowly, 2″-3″ per year. In 10 years, it will grow 18″-24″ tall and wide in a dense, globe-shaped mound. During the spring and summer, Carstens’ needles are medium green. But when the temperatures drop, they turn a rich, golden yellow that can intensify to golden orange in the cold weather. Mugo pines are monoecious, meaning male and female cones grow on the same plant. The red male cones shed their pollen in midsummer, and the purple female seed cones ripen to a dark brown in the fall. Its size makes it a perfect plant for small spaces, rock gardens, conifer groupings, foundation plantings, and urban and Asian gardens. It also adapts well to containers placed in a sunny spot.
This little pine loves the sun and will not scorch. It is hardy in USDA zones 2-8 and produces its most vibrant winter color in the brightest light and coldest temperatures of that range. It is adaptable to various types of soil and will grow in acidic or alkaline loam, sand, or clay as long as it is well-draining. The tree needs regular watering during the first season while its roots are developing and then during dry periods to maintain its health. Container-grown trees will require more frequent watering since the soil will dry out more quickly. Pruning is unnecessary except for removing dead foliage since Carstens grows slowly and keeps its mound-like shape.
Carstens is a rare plant that brightens up the landscape in the dark winter months. Some companion plants that go well with Carstens pine in its golden winter coloring are holly, winterberry, evergreen barberry, juniper, and arborvitae. Its green color in the spring and summer contrasts nicely with dogwood, Japanese maple, flowering cherry, peonies, and ornamental grasses planted nearby. Low-growing flowering perennials, such as Lithodora, lilyturf, dwarf iris, and oriental lilies, and groundcovers, like ice plants, hens and chicks, periwinkle, rockrose, creeping phlox, and sedum, also provide color against the tree’s summer green.
Carstens mugo pine is an easy-care plant that is deer-resistant, salt-tolerant, very hardy, and beautiful year-round, especially with its golden winter colors.