Thumbs Up For Thujas!
Posted: Friday, September 14, 2007
by Thomas Andrews
Park Seed Company
Thuja—the common name of these sweet-smelling, softwood conifers is Arborvitae, or "Tree of Life" in Latin. These lovely evergreen trees may not hold an ancient secret to immortality, but they are certified pros at sprucing up your garden.
Officially, there are only five species of Thuja, but you’ll find many different cultivars of these species, like the ever-popular Thuja 'Steeplechase'. Varieties of the species Thuja Occidentalis are often used as ornamentals and accents. Thuja ‘Green Giant’ is a hybrid of Thuja Standishii, the Japanese Thuja, and Thuja Plicata, the Western Redcedar. Western Redcedars are huge trees native to western North America that have a legendary history of usefulness to the native Americans. And they aren't really cedars at all—Thujas are part of the Cypress family.
Thujas For your Garden
Arborvitae or Thuja varieties like ‘Green Giant’ and ‘Steeplechase’ grow faster than all the other conifers, sometimes as much as 3 to 5 feet in one year. They are incredibly dense, require very little maintenance, and give your garden that sought-after, elegant evergreen look at a relatively low cost. And they are hardy to a wide range of climates. Thujas are very symmetrical and require no pruning—they may be pruned for hedging or topiary designs, but are beautiful if untouched.
Privacy Trees
‘Green Giant’ and ‘Steeplechase’ both make perfect privacy trees. These varieties quickly grow into dense screens that block unwanted sights, sounds, and winds. Like their distant cousin, the Leyland Cypress, these trees mature into a thick wall that makes the perfect rich, green backdrop to almost any garden design. Just buy them young, plant them roughly 5 to 8 feet apart, and, in just a few years, you’ll have a beautiful living privacy fence.
Historical Uses of Thuja
The highly scented soft wood of Thuja trees resists decay, which makes it desirable for all kinds of construction. Its use is typical of similar trees, like Aspen and Cedar. Thuja is used to make moth-repellent chests and wardrobes, and rot-resistant fence-posts and shingles.
Thuja foliage is rich in vitamin C. In fact, it has historically been used in the Americas as a remedy for scurvy, a condition caused by a vitamin C- deficient diet. The oils extracted from the foliage have been used to treat various skin afflictions, particularly warts. It is also known to have been used as a homeopathic remedy for some psychological afflictions. So while the Thuja may not exactly be the "tree of life," it might just cure your warts and put a roof over your head!
Aesthetically, any tree from the genus Thuja will be a striking addition to your garden, and that is why they are so popular. But there is also general academic interest for historians and for plant breeders looking to the future. As it stands, the 'Green Giant' and 'Steeplechase' are the most popular Thuja varieties because of how quickly they grow, their symmetrical shape, and the niches they fill in garden—being both a beautiful botanical feature and a functional structural component, all in one.
Thomas Andrews is a garden writer for Wayside Gardens.
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