Translated from ancient Greek thuja means "tree of life." Why does she so attract the attention of biologists, doctors, designers, perfumers and ordinary gardeners? First of all, it is adaptation to the environment. Thuja can grow in swamps, in valleys, along the banks of mountain rivers, adapts well to soils rich in limestone and poor podzolic. In addition, this tree lives for a long time, its age may exceed the three hundredth anniversary. Thuja has been known in Europe since the 16th century, and in Russia it was first landed at the beginning of the 19th century. in Crimea, in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden. The first admirers appreciated not only her fabulous beauty, which is preserved all year round. Essential oils are present in the needles, which have long been widely used in medicine and perfumery.
Features and types
Thuja belongs to gymnosperm conifers from the Juniper family. This genus includes cypress, sequoia, taxium. Plants of this genus, on average, live up to 150 years, but sometimes more.
The beauty of the bush all year
Thuja is represented by trees and shrubs. Young plants have soft, needle needles of soft green color, and adults have scaly, saturated green. The fruits are oblong small cones with flat seeds. They ripen in the first year.
For your information! 120 varieties are known that differ in color and structure of needles, size and type of crowns.
Western - the most common type
All varieties are divided into five types:
- Western thuja is the most common cone-shaped species. Unpretentious and winter-hardy, suitable for gardening. It has many forms and varieties;
- folded thuja. He tolerates winter worse, young shoots freeze during cold weather, but gradually the needles are restored;
- Eastern thuja is suitable for the southern regions. In the middle lane it is necessary to cover it;
- Japanese thuja. Prefers mixed forests or mountains. Frost-resistant, unpretentious, withstands long periods of drought;
- Korean thuja - a shrub with a spreading crown with large branches and soft needles, undersized. The second name is thuja creeping. Landed only in the southern regions.
Thuja Japanese, frost-resistant and unpretentious
How to grow a thuja: reproduction
Thuja propagation occurs both in the usual vegetative way and by seeds. It is not difficult to grow it, but you should not neglect the rules of planting. Varietal plants are usually propagated only by the vegetative method, to which biologists include division of the bush and cuttings.
Propagation by cuttings
Cuttings are prepared in June from lignified 2-3-year-old stems. Semi-lignified stems of the current year are also suitable. Cuttings must be carefully cut off with a heel, having treated with a solution of heteroauxin. The cuttings should be planted to a depth of 15-25 cm. The composition of the required mix: peat, turf land and sand in a ratio of 1: 1: 1. Everything is spilled with a solution of potassium permanganate. A micro-greenhouse effect is created for the handle by covering it with a plastic film. Ventilate and harden only after complete rooting.
Note! For winter, plants are covered with sawdust or spruce branches. When freezing temperatures can be covered with a film.
Seed propagation
This is a long process, which takes 3-5 years. Only freshly harvested seeds that are stratified are sown. Seeds are refrigerated in the fall, where they are stored until spring. Sown in open ground to a depth of 0.5 cm in a shaded place. A thin layer of sawdust is poured on top, better than conifers.
Care must be taken to ensure that the soil is loose, moist and protected from direct sunlight. When shoots appear, the bed should be mulched with peat and spilled with mineral fertilizer once every 2 weeks. Young growth, grown up for winter, is again covered with spruce branches and foil. In spring, sprout care is resumed.
Important! Only in the third year, when the height of the thuja reaches half a meter, can it be transplanted to a permanent place.
Thuja: planting and care in the open ground
Thuja planting can be carried out both in spring and autumn. But spring is preferable (from April 20-25 to May 15-20), since during the summer the root system of a young shrub will get stronger and they will not be afraid.
Seedling ready for planting
Important! How to plant thuja and how to choose the right place on the site, you need to take care in advance. Despite the unpretentiousness, the plant loves light, but does not withstand direct bright rays. The bright midday sun dehydrates the shrub, which makes it worse for wintering. He does not like thuja and drafts.
How to plant thuja in the open ground in spring
After choosing a place, a pit with a diameter of about 1 m is dug. The root system of the seedling should fit in the pit so that 15-20 cm remains to the bottom. Ground mixed with a small amount of compost or rotted manure is poured onto the bottom. Soddy soil with the addition of sand and peat is also suitable.
Note! If this is a young plant, and an earthen lump has not formed, then before planting, you need to lower the root system into a mixture of clay with water (sour cream consistency).
The seedling is set in the center of the pit, the root system of the thuja is straightened, the pit is filled with prepared soil mixture.
If the plant is large, then the root system from the pot goes with a lump of earth and sinks into the pit. The root neck of the thuja should be above ground level. Then you should gently ram the earth around the seedling, pour plenty of water, adding root in it. After absorbing the liquid over the soil, you need to pour a layer of mulch (compost, peat) for additional protection of the root system on adverse days. Thuja planting in the spring is more favorable for its growth and formation.
Important! Mulch should not fall on the lower branches and cover the trunk, otherwise the tree may rot.
How to choose ready-made seedlings, or why it is better to contact nurseries
You need to buy one with a closed root system in the container. It could be an earthen lump wrapped in burlap. The plant should not have peeled bark, damaged shoots and signs of disease. Planting and growing a seedling will be easier if you buy it in special nurseries, where care is done by professionals. You can also get step-by-step instructions on landing.
It is best to grow thuja from a small plant, as it takes root better. Depending on the variety and climate, the colon-shaped thuja can grow by 1-1.5 m in 5-6 years. Dwarfs grow slower. An important condition is to properly fertilize.
Golden Brabant, golden needles
Fast-growing varieties are in special demand:
- Brabant. Colon-shaped thuja, which grows annually by 25-35 cm up and 7-15 cm in breadth. She has large carved needles of a malachite hue. It is frost-resistant, fast-growing, often used in landscape design;
- Golden Brabant. She has the color of golden needles;
- Kolumna. A narrow columnar crown, annually upwards adds 30-40 cm and a breadth of about 5 cm. The needles are scaly. The variety is winter-hardy;
- Fastigiata. Colon-shaped and fast-growing. Crohn is narrow-conical and columnar. The growth is about 30 cm in height and 5 cm in width. The needles are dark green in color, soft with a resinous aroma. Resistant to cold;
- thuja folded, or giant. Adds up to 25 cm per year. The needles are dark green, shiny, white spots are visible on the underside of it. It has a coniferous-sharp aroma. Winter-hardy, but does not tolerate heat;
- Smaragd is a type of western thuja. She has a narrow-conical shape, a dense dense crown. The variety is frost-resistant and shade-tolerant.
Important! It is necessary to choose a plant intended for the region in which it will be planted.
Thuja: how to plant and care
How quickly the thuja will grow depends on caring for it. Frequent watering, top dressing and pruning are very important for young plants. The seedlings need to be loosened and weeded. Since the root system is on the surface, weeding should be carried out carefully around the tree no deeper than 8-10 cm.
How to feed thuja in spring
In spring, the plant must be fed with mineral fertilizers. Now on sale there are special balanced fluids intended for certain types of plants that are diluted with water. The most famous of them are root and agrecol.
How to trim thuja and form its crown
Pruning is carried out in the second year after planting with a powerful secateurs. It is best to cut in the summer, when the branches and buds of the bush are finally formed, and it begins to bloom. The next pruning is done at the end of August.
Thuja haircut, shrub decoration
How to trim the thuja? The technology is simple: usually the formation begins when the plant reaches the desired height. No more than 1/3 of the shoot is cut off.
For your information! Pruning is performed as the thuja grows at any time of the year, but is preferable from spring to autumn.
Diseases of thuja and their treatment
Most often, trees suffer from the following ailments:
- late blight. Signs: the trunk gains softness from below, the tree fades, needles of gray color. Reason: moisture stagnates in the soil and does not drain. The root rots. The disease can be prevented by watering with fungicides. Not subject to treatment;
- brown shoots. Signs: yellowish appearance of some scales on the shoot. After they turn brown and die. Treatment: cut the diseased processes, the tree will be fed with limestone and special fertilizers. In summer, spray with foundationazole;
- rust and shute. Signs: darkening and decay of the needles. Treatment: treat with a copper-containing fungicide (HOM or Bordeaux fluid). For prevention, cut all bad branches and burn them.
Thuja in landscape design
Insect parasites also attack the tree. Most often, the affected thuja turns yellow, what many do not know what to do in this case. The reason for this may be thuja mole-mottled or false shields, which spoils the aboveground part. In the framework of pest control, you need to spray with karbofos, an actelik. Processing is recommended before the buds open. From the insects that infect the roots of the plant, autumn digging helps so that there is no stagnation of water.
The most popular application of thuja is decoration of personal plots, squares and malls. This is one of the most popular shrubs in landscape design. Near the house look great both separately and next to the bushes. A graceful crown creates a living impenetrable hedge. In skillful hands, beautiful figures are created from greenery. Do not forget that thuja cleans the air, saturates it with volatile. And most importantly, it gives beauty.
