Monday, January 9, 2017

Instant Gratification With Thuja Green Giants

By Scott Bailey


Well, maybe not instant gratification, but as close as you can get in the real world of botany. Thuja Green Giants are probably the fastest growing ornamental evergreen you can buy. A hybrid developed by crossing an American thuja with an Asian variety, this gorgeous tree tapers gracefully to a majestic height, achieves a uniform width, and grows up to five feet a year after getting established. It is also renowned for being maintenance free.

The basic drill is to plant them five to six feet apart in a row. In a remarkably short time, you'll have an unbroken line of year-round greenery, made up of identical trees. They are easy to prune to keep them at the exact height you need against a fence or along a lot line. Planted on an estate, these beauties can shield a home from the road and make a magnificent statement at the same time.

These vigorous evergreens need space to grow, although being in a row limits their height to about twenty feet and their width to about eight. As a single specimen, they can tower higher than a house and spread twenty-five feet around. They should be planted at least four feet from the property line or a fence, and not closer than fifteen feet to a septic field. Their roots will spread a little farther than the tree itself.

Thujas are evergreens in the cypress family. They are also known as arborvitae, a name which may be more familiar. The hybrids adapt to almost any soil, are insect and disease resistant, and don't need fertilizer once they are firmly rooted in place. Even bagworms leave them alone, as do deer most of the time. Although they are Heat resistant, they do best with regular watering during hot, dry periods. Because the best trees are grown from cuttings, they all look alike.

A seamless row of Green Giants will do more than make a privacy screen or windbreak. They are an effective sound barrier, muting noise of neighbors and traffic. They can also shield your garden from air pollution. If you're near a busy street, heavy metals from car exhaust may contaminate herbs and vegetables you grow for food. A dense hedge can cut pollution down to safe levels.

They are bred from native trees, so deer don't particularly like them. They are hardy to minus 20 degrees F, escape most damage from heavy snowfall, and grow well in zones 5 to 9. There are planting recommendations based on your zone, so be careful to plant them at the right time of year for Georgia. Check online to see sizes, prices, shipping costs, and tips on growing thujas.

Trees are sold bare-root, with a burlap wrap around their pruned roots, or in containers. You will find six foot transplants in one gallon containers, but other nurseries might sell them in much larger tubs. Growers sometimes sell direct, which keeps the price down. Don't forget to factor in shipping costs when you compare prices, and look for free shipping offers.

These trees that look like royalty and grow like weeds can transform your property in such a short period of time it seems almost magical. It's unreal that you can have six or seven foot trees shipped to your door and have a majestic row of them in as little as four years. However, it's true.




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