Common Name: American arborvitae
Type: Needled evergreen
Zone: 2 to 7
Height: 7.00 to 8.00 feet
Spread: 3.00 to 4.00 feet
Bloom Time: Non-flowering
Bloom Description: Non-flowering
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Other: Winter Interest
Tolerate: Clay Soil, Black Walnut, Air Pollution
Grow in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Somewhat wide range of soil tolerance, but prefers moist, neutral to alkaline, well-drained loams. Intolerant of dry conditions. Best in full sun, but generally appreciates some light afternoon shade in hot summer climates such as the St. Louis area. Avoid full shade where foliage density will substantially decrease. Avoid exposed, windy sites.
Thuja occidentalis, commonly known as American arborvitae, Eastern arborvitae, Eastern white cedar or Northern white cedar, is a dense, conical to narrow-pyramidal (sometimes maturing to broad-pyramidal), often single-trunked, evergreen tree that is native to eastern and central Canada south to northern Illinois, Ohio and New York with scattered populations further south in the Appalachians to North Carolina. Mature trees may reach 40-60' tall in the wild over time, but in cultivation typically grow much smaller to 20-30' tall. Scale-like, aromatic, yellow-green to green foliage appears in flattened sprays. Red-brown bark will exfoliate on mature branches and trunks. 'Filiformis' is a loose, upright-rounded to conical, tree-like form with a weeping habit. It matures over time to 7-8' tall and to 3-4' wide. Loose tufts of thread-like pendulous branchlets droop toward the ground in an unusually and ornamentally attractive manner.
No serious insect or disease problems. Leaf blight may cause some foliage to spot and drop. Watch for canker. Leaf miner may damage leaf tips. Bagworms, mealybug, scales and spider mites are occasional visitors. Foliage may show some winter burn (turns yellow-brown) in exposed sites. Susceptible to damage/stem breakage in winter from ice and snow accumulations.
Compact weeping evergreen for shady landscape areas. Foundations. Shrub borders. Specimen/accent.