The San Gabriel & Moonshine Creek Railroad is considered a “backwoods” line which in my opinion should have groves of tall evergreens representing pine or redwood forests. Because I live in USDA hardiness zone 9b it is difficult to find a suitable looking shrub that could pass for a pine and yet be tolerant of the hot and humid weather in central Florida. After consulting with an expert at my favorite gardening place, Lukas Nursery, I decided to plant four 30″ cone-shaped Eugenias as a test.

I planted them with their 2-gallon pots into the ground in hopes of controlling growth and making them easier to move in the future if the need arises.

It was easy to prune the bottom part of each shrub to reveal the single-stalk “trunk” and I’m hoping the rest of the “trees” will begin to take on more irregular shapes as they mature.

So far, I’m quite pleased with their appearance and seeing the occasional logging train passing between the tree trunks gives the impression that they’ve been growing there for a long time.

I plan on eventually adding more Eugenias as time permits, expanding the forest to potentially 15-20 “trees” flanking both sides of the San Gabriel Canyon.

Who knows, I may even run a new spur line across the canyon and into the “woods” to add more interest and switching opportunities. Perhaps a new mine or logging camp may grow out of it!

While some may believe that Florida is a tropical paradise year-round, it does get cold in the Winter and sub-freezing temperatures are not uncommon. Eugenias are sensitive to extreme cold, especially if the wind blows. I’ve read about several ways to protect these plants in the winter and the most intriguing method was to wrap them in bubble wrap! The more I think about it, the more sense it makes and the more I like the idea. I will give it a try this winter and report my findings in a future post. Stay tuned!