thuja green giant question

13 years ago

I have a several thuja green giants that have green buds growing on the branches, I have close to 30 trees but only 6-8 are having the green buds growing.

Most of these trees came from botany & they look great, BUT

the ones purchased at home depot under the name thuja green giant look, smell good also,but have these green buds.

My email is 2toneblu@sbcglobal.net

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

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Comments (22)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
great narrative.. but i would need some pix .... is there any chance you are seeing cones.. on this conifer????

if they dont have buds.. they are dead ....

we dont need your email in the post.. if you check the box.. that will send replies to your email ...

sooooo ... any chance at some pix???

ken
wisconsitom
13 years ago
"if they dont have buds.. they are dead ...."

Ahem.........Mr. Ken......arbs don't have buds per se.

Agree though, the OP may be seeing cone formation, though it's a bit late for that, no? My GGs are too young for cones but all the Thuja occidentalis around these parts are already dispensing seeds.........lots of seeds.

+oM
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Sara, while some pics would help, it doesn't sound to me as though any pruning needs to be done. A little tip browning is normal for all arbs and will be completely obscured by new growth later. Also, GGs have a strongly predetermined growth form. Any pruning done in this regard will, IMO, make them worse, not better. Now if there was to be a whole complete branch that died for some reason, that should be removed. but it doesn't sound to me like this is the case. As to fertilizing, if the trees are surrounded by turf that is receiving regular fertilization, the trees will be getting enough from that. Even where this is not the case, folks tend to want to overuse fertilizer on trees. Mostly, they don't need it. But.......a moderate dosing of some nitrogen could well speed up top growth on the plants. Just go very mellow with it, if at all. The GG grows so fast that there tends to be some space between branches where the stem has elongated. Please resist the tempatation to "fix" this. They will be just fine, filling in as side branchlets elongate and multiply over time. To me and many others, the best possible appearance with most conifers is achieved when we do nothing to alter it. Be patient and I think you will see this too. +oM
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Plant them on at least 6 feet centers. It would be even better, if you desire a faster privacy screen, to plant two staggered rows of them with each being planted on 8 or 10 feet centers, and the staggered rows with holes that are dug at least 6 feet between the front and back rows. Water them well, but if planting in a clay soil which is not elevated or otherwise draining well, monitor them closely to ensure you do not allow their roots to suffocate by sitting in too much water. Also do not let the roots dry out too much. While the trees are getting adjusted, do your best to keep the soil evenly moist, but not soggy. If you want to feed the trees do not use anything more strong than the slow release 4 month lasting, non-burning Osmocote. This fertilizer can even be mixed into the planting backfill soil without burning the roots. In October apply more osmokote by spreading it under the trees and gently scrape small amounts of the top soil and mix in the fertilizer. Also spread cedar mulch under the tree if your soil seems to dry out too quickly. If the trees become stressed and their needles growing on the lower branches begin to yellow, do not cut off those branches; not even if they begin to appear as though they have died. You can remove any dry needles you desire, but do not cut off any entire branches. Just like most arborvitae trees, Green Giants will not regrow any branches, which you cut further back than anywhere the needles have been growing out from. When any branches have appeared to die, take the time to determine if your tree needs less water, more water, or a better watering system. Once you correct the problem and the tree becomes happy again, it will begin to produce green needles again on those once dead appearing branches. Also do not let dogs urinate on any of your Green Giant trees. These trees will begin to die if a medium to large size dog has consistantly been allowed to use them as a place to urinate on at least for several weeks. If your trees are sheltered from the cold winter north and northwest wind, or if they do not receive too much winter direct sun, they might stay green all even all winter. Otherwise they could turn a redish or burnt brown color over the winter months. If this happens do not be alarmed, because once Spring temps warm and rains arrive they should green back up nicely. I have noticed that Green Giants which stay green year round seem to gain more growth height throughout the year. Green Giants which struggle by being planted in poorly draining situations, and or which turn red in the winter seem to grow much more slowly. If these manage to survive they will spread and grow thicker trunks and their top growth will be so slow that the trees stay fairly nicely filled out from top to bottom. The fast growing trees often begin to send up a growth shoot which appears much more sparce than the bottom parts of the tree. When this happens, if you give the tree a feeding of osmocote the trees will, over a short time, begin to fill out the top growth to be more in balance with the thickness of the lower, older developed part of the tree. Do not cut off any of the thin looking shoots that burst forth at the top of your trees. Each thin shoot which begins to grow out of the top of your trees is needed for the trees to grow taller.
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Definitely no need to re-order. Order any remaining ones you need to do your job to be delivered anytime april (when you order request the plants be shipped dormant). To address your soil question, if I was in the same exact situation, I'd find soil from other areas of my property that contains some of the smaller of the rocks mixed in and use that as the backfill for a hole (judging from the size of your seedlings...) w' to 2.5' across and 18" deep. If the soil surrounding the hole that you dug is not porous (which from what you wrote will not be the case... as you say 'you won't reach clay') then that should be the ideal/perfect scene - for those new cuttings. Lastly, don't allow the soil to dry out for more than a few days... 2 should be the limit but 3 is "ok". To backfill the holes you dug, to retrieve the soil, bring all the rocks from your planting holes back to those and... cover those with just bagged topsoil - and continue to cover them as needed with more topsoil... until you're satisfied with the job. As "tj" pointed out about the one on the right, he's right, it's 100% a gonner. Anything on your other plants that resembles that... trim that off and right now is as good of a time as any. Doing that takes any 'dead weight' off the rest of the plant... & on all those seedlings - which damn fine to me & where there's green, especially on Thuja's there's... a great chance new shoots will develop. You're good to go buddy. All lights are "green" from me, also go ahead and with your fingernails pinch off the dead "tissue" on the alive cuttings. Sometimes, I use fingernail scissors, for lack of a better-term. Dax
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I think many conifers grow very slowly. Pine trees are the exception. They grow very fast. You may consider those, but they are wayyyyyy more than 20ft. Another fast growing conifer is the Witchita Blue Juniper. It will get 4-8 ft wide and 15-20 ft tall. If you plant them, make sure to plant 4 feet next to each other. It can be used as a screen or a windbreak and will need no pruning. It also has appealing color. Goodluck with what ever you choose.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
seriously tom ... a total lack of any useful information in the post .. nor a picture.. and you are going to chide me for a lack of clarity ..

if an arb doe not have growth points.. whatever you want to call them .. it is dead ... whether you call it a bud or a thingee-ma-jigger-bob ... eh ...

so what do you imagine they are referring too?????

instead of attacking me.. why didnt you answer the post.. if it was so clear....

ken

ps: or the droughts just got me a bit unhinged tonight ....
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
sorry tom.. i was cranky ... at other things going on ....

gene sent me an email pic.. which i cant seem to copy/attach/upload... he promises pix if and when his wife lets him near the camera .. lol ... too bad he didnt send me the link ....

i do believe he is seeing cones...

gene... under the box you type in .... is a box for OPTIONAL LINK URL .... if you copy/paste the link there.. and then name it below .... we can all go look.. but personal pix would be better ..

ken
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
Heres some pictures; hope I'm doing this right

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789441}}
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics003.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics002.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics004.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics003.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics002.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics004.jpg
http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn134/two_toneblu/Thujapics001.jpg

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789441}}
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
hey.. use the HTML CODE at photobucket.. on preview.. if you see it in the post.. we will see it ...

and just do 001 .... for practice....

i have linked it below ....

those are cones ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789443}}
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
heres pic 1

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789443}}
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
PIC2

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789445}}
wisconsitom
13 years ago
'salright Ken. That ill humor is far from your usual good humor buddy. Happens to the best of us.

That tree has gone conular! I always associate heavy cone production with a stresser, usually drought, but I see green grass in the background, so it must not be too awful dry there.

I jus dunno........+oM
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
pic4

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:789447}}
aukumar
13 years ago
I have a dozen Thuja green giants planted along the fence for privacy purposes. They were planted about one year ago. Most recently three of them died, may be due to over watering. My backyard is sloping towards the fence an hence the irrigation of the lawn is flowing towards these trees at the fence. Now a few of these are turning brown. I am worried that these may die as well. The soil condition is loamy clay. The ground is moist around the trees. I live in N Texas and under zone 7B. Summers are very hot and so I irrigate the lawn thrice a week. If I turn off the sprinkler the lawn starts to die out. Pl suggest me what should I do?
I'll try to post a foto or two tomorrow.
Thanks in avance for your help.
botann
13 years ago
It's pretty hard to drown a Thuja, especially in Texas.
(I spent a summer in Wichita Falls)
Have you used a broad leaved weed killer on your lawn?
If so, the chemicals could be affecting your trees.
Mike
wisconsitom
13 years ago
Agree with Botann generally that the genus Thuja is tolerant of high moisture levels. I suppose anything is possible, but when I see-quite frequently-references on this board to arbs getting too much water, I always envision the countless times I've seen our native T. occidentalis growing IN standing water.

+oM
aukumar
13 years ago
Tom and Mike,
I appreciate your help and thoughts. Broad leaf pesticide was used very sparingly on the lawn during Spring season and was not used on these trees. I have uploaded 3 fotos of these trees browning in the Garen Galleries for your review. Please search for "Thuja Green Giant browning" or "aukumar" in the gallery. Any suggestion as to next steps in saving these is much appreciated.
Thanks
in ny zone5
13 years ago
There was some conversation going on about the size of theses Green Giants in the future. It looks like in present post they are planted 2 ft from the fence. What would such a tree with a future width of 20 ft do to that fence, push it over? That neighbor probably does not know yet about the 8 ft of his property missing in a few years.
Only thinking.
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
The trees are planted 3 or 3 1/2 feet from the fence, what ever grows through the fence would probally get cut at the fence.
wisconsitom
13 years ago
......and as a better idea, one could simply remove whole branches at the trunk on the fence side. No use having these branches being in this congested area. Just cleanly cut them off as they get to needing it. There is no reason to be wary of doing so. And trunks of arbs are attractive in their own right.

+oM
two_tone
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks Tom,
Create idea; In the pics, I have a mix of green giants and about eight thuja plicata that are coning. It will be interesting to see the height. I was told the thuja plicata trees are doing good to show alot of cones within 1 year of being planted.
aukumar
13 years ago
Hi
Thanks for the inputs. If you were commenting on the pics I posted, I would like to say that my Thuja Green Giants are planted about 5ft from the property boundary line, 4ft from the wooden fence. My plan was to trim the side of the tree that is towards the fence and hence enjoy the larger lawn in addition to providing the privacy from the busy intersection which is right at the SW corner of my plot.
Further, one more TGG is also started to show brown. The soil is still moist. I irrigate the lawn 3 times a week. Will tilling around the trees help? Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks
wisconsitom
13 years ago
Hey Auk. Sorry, I just now got around to looking at your pics. Let's see......I think we've established that two-tone's trees are okay and just have cones. Yours however do look to be afflicted with something. When did this dead tissue first start appearing? You've kept things moist through the heat so it does not appear to be a straight-up water issue unless, though I tend to think it a remote possibility, they've had too much moisture. Again, I doubt it but it is possible.

Given how hot it gets there, could it be that even with moist soil, the trees could not transport enough water up into the branches to keep everything going? I'm just not sure what is happening here.

+oM
aukumar
13 years ago
Thanks Tom,
The soil is just moist enough I think. The browning of leaves started about 3 weeks ago. Ten days ago, there was a heavy downpour and so I did shut off my sprinkler for 5days. When I felt that the top soil near these trees were beginning to loose moisture, I started to irrigate.
Now, a little bit of background. The first three TGGs that have now died started browning sometime in May 2010. I, in May 2010, then dug out one of these to find that there was enough water (almost stagnant) in the soil. I transferred these to 3 gallon pots with garden soil and native soil. But still could not revive them. Now the existing ones have started to show the same pattern. But some branches are still green thus giving me hope that they could survive. I am afraid of transferring them again to 3 gallon pots. This evening, I found that the foliage that was brown was very dry and upon crushing it with fingers made crackling sound like crushing of a potato chip. I guess there is not enough water. I am much confused and worried. I'll try to irrigate again using dripping system I have installed.
Thanks

thuja green giant question

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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

wisconsitom

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