Thuja has long been one of the most popular hedge plants because it is so easy to care for. Read here how to properly plant and care for thuja.
The advantage of a thuja hedge can not only be described by its easy care, but also by opaque growth and a year-round, evergreen needle dress. Which is why the thuja plant is certainly one of the most popular hedge plants in Europe and can be found everywhere.
Well-known Thuja varieties
Thuja plants can easily grow up to 6 meters tall, are frost hardy and tolerate regular pruning. Which means that all Thuja varieties can also be shaped. You can even cut thuja plants into balls or figures - similar to box trees. Thuja varieties known in our gardens include:
- Thuja Columna - narrow column shape
- Thuja Smaragd - intensive coloring (<=meistverkaufte & beliebteste Sorte)
- Thuja Brabant - fast growing
- Thuja Plicata - shiny colouration
- Thuja Occidentalis - also available in yellow
- Thuja Orientalis - some subspecies are offered here as dwarf thuja
- Thuja Standishii - flowers in March and forms cones
- Thuja Koraiensis - low-growing, also suitable for the shade
Hint:
You can buy small thuja plants quite cheaply in the garden store. Especially since they can grow an average of around 20 to 30 centimeters per year.
Plant Thuja
Thujas should be planted either in early spring (March/April) or in late summer (August/September). You have to make sure that you keep a distance of about 40 centimeters when planting the hedge, as the Thuja's branch into each other over the years. You can also plant Thuja's free-standing.
For planting, you have to dig up the soil by about 40 to 60 centimeters, depending on the size of the plant. Then fill up the excavation a little with peat dust and water it. Enrich the soil of the excavation with fresh compost, then this guarantees good growth of the plants.
You can then place the plants with balls in the excavation and fill them up with the enriched soil - this oneshow up well At the end you should water the freshly planted plants extensively.
Hint:
In the first few days and weeks you need to keep a thuja plant constantly moist. If it's not raining, you should help out with watering.
Thuja care
» casting:
Like all other plants, thujas need to be watered on hot days and during longer periods of drought to prevent them from turning brown.
» pruning:
From a certain growth height (and also when Thuja turns brown) you should cut back every year. Ideally, you should carry out this cut in early autumn, because some animals use the thuja as a breeding ground, especially in spring. And then only need them again in late autumn as a wintering place.
» Fertilize:
Thujas usually do not need to be fertilized. Only the small dwarf Thuja's tolerate a little complete fertilizer every now and then.
Hint:
You can distribute various garden waste (e.g. freshly mown lawn, leaves, etc.) under the thuja hedge in autumn. The waste then releases valuable nutrients as it decomposes.