This one can truly be considered the queen of landscape design. The evergreen coniferous plant of the Cypress family is an excellent decoration element and looks great both as a separate plant and in group plantings.

Breeding time

In most of the territory of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, the most suitable time for the breeding of thuja are spring and summer. And the most favorable sometimes, no doubt, can be considered the second or third decade of June. The fact is that at this time there is a second wave of shoot growth, which gives stronger seedlings than can be obtained from spring. But it should be understood that it will be possible to use these seedlings for planting only for the next season, and they will have to spend the winter in a cool place.

You can harvest seedlings in the middle of spring, they will not be as strong as June, their immunity is usually weaker, and germination is worse, but if for any reason, you are not sure that you can prepare material in early summer, You can do this in April

There is an opinion that it is better to propagate thuja in the fall, since in winter the activity of the plant noticeably decreases, it falls into a kind of suspended animation. Consequently, he needs much less moisture than during the active period of growth, and the risk of dying from a water shortage during winter frosts is much lower.

However, it should be taken into account that plants take root longer in autumn than in spring, so in the matter of planting time, it is necessary to build on how soon you need to grow a young thaw.

Breeding methods

There are 4 main ways of breeding thuja, which will be described in detail below.

Video: How to breed and grow thuja

Seeds

If you are ready to wait 4-6 years before your tree grows, you can resort to this method of reproduction. Among the shortcomings, in addition to the long growing period, it should be noted that with the seed method of reproduction, parental hereditary traits may not be transmitted. But if you are not involved in varietal propagation, you can try to grow one by the generative method.

Of the positive aspects, one cannot fail to say that plants planted in this way have a stronger immunity than vegetative thuja. They better tolerate cold and illness.

The planting process and further germination are as follows:

1. In late summer - early autumn, you need to collect ripe cones that have not yet had time to open, put them in a warm place. After 2-3 days, the cones will open, you will need to take seeds from them, remove husks and wings from them.
2. Pour these seeds into a canvas bag, and after the snow falls, bury it in a snowdrift. This operation is called stratification, its purpose is to harden the seeds.
3. With the onset of spring, they begin to germinate seeds, you need to get them out of the snow and plant them in previously prepared soil. You should choose a sheltered from the wind, a well-lit place. Dig a rectangular plot of approximately 0.5 × 1 m in the ground; the specific dimensions depend on the number of seeds that you will plant. The depth of excavation is 6–8 cm, this volume must be filled with a mixture of equal parts of peat and sand.
4. Make grooves in the substrate, about 2 cm deep. Approximate sowing density is 1 g / 0.5 m. Sprinkle the seeds on the seeds with sawdust of conifers and peat, moisten well and regularly.
5. After the seeds germinate, they need to create a slight shadow, direct sunlight is extremely undesirable. When the sprouts reach a height of 5–7 cm, they dive, leaving the strongest, trying to maintain a distance of about 10–12 cm between them.

Sown seeds should be fed with a weak solution of well-rotted manure, or universal mineral fertilizers for conifers. Do not forget to loosen the soil, especially after watering. If necessary, weeding should be done.

In winter, young growth is covered with spruce spruce branches, and the soil around is mulched with peat and sawdust, if the temperature drops below -10 ° C, plantings are covered with a garden non-woven fabric. Upon reaching the age of three, they perform another pick (if necessary), and after another 1-2 years, you can plant the plants in permanent places.

Did you know? The smell of arborvitae, some Italian manufacturers of premium shoes, are used to flavor men's shoes. Interestingly, this fragrance is combined with the same notes used in the preparation of perfumes by companies such as Hugo Boss and Ralph Lauren.

Cuttings

Propagating thawed by cuttings is the most popular, and as most gardeners tend to consider, an effective method of breeding conifers. Cutting a shrub is quite simple, the main thing is to properly prepare the planting material and act in accordance with the technology proven for many decades.

Video: Thuja propagation by cuttings

Step-by-step instructions for propagating thuja vegetatively:

1. Select a shoot at the top of the thuja, which is 2-3 years old, and break off a shoot from it, about 20 cm long. It is necessary to break off the appendage towards the ground, no cutting tools can be used. The place where the process connected to the mother branch is called the heel, its presence contributes to the early rooting. If this place is smoothly cut, the stalk may not take root at all.
2. A well-honed knife clear heel to white woodby removing all remnants of bark and needles. Residues can, in the future, provoke decay processes, so you need to remove them carefully.
3. Cook growth stimulant solution, heteroauxin, succinic acid, Epin, Kornevin, etc., are suitable, in accordance with the instructions on the package. Place the stalk in the stimulator for 12–20 hours.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the soil mixture for planting the cuttings. They make it from equal shares of turf land, peat and dry river sand. Sand must first be calcined in the oven for half an hour, at a temperature of + 250 ° C. Then let it cool completely without taking it out of the oven. This is a mandatory measure, since sand is a beneficial environment for bacteria, including pathogens. If you have such an opportunity, the described procedure for calcining the sand should be performed 4-5 weeks before the cuttings are planted, and the soil mixture should be prepared a week before the event. The fact is that many experienced gardeners are of the opinion that this is the minimum time for restoring the natural microflora of sand.
5. Next, you need to choose a container for growing cuttings. It is better if it is a plastic container with a diameter of more than 14 cm. Plastic buckets from under dairy products are suitable. In plastic, it is easier to make drainage holes, for this it will be enough to use a well-heated nail of a suitable diameter. Holes are required for drainage and aeration.
6. Put drainage at the bottom of the container (expanded clay, or its mixture with calcined sand, chipped tiles and pebbles). On top of the drainage, lay out the soil mixture and spill it well with a solution of potassium permanganate in boiling water (2%). The described procedure should be carried out 2-3 days before planting the cuttings, so that the substrate has time to drain and dry out a little.
7. In a sanitized substrate, using a thin stick, make holes 3-4 cm deepin which to install the petioles. Make sure that only peeled wood is in the ground and the needles do not touch the substrate. Tamp the soil around the seedlings and pour warm water.
8. Cover the container with seedlings with a film and place in a place with an air humidity of 85–90% and a temperature of +18 ... + 23 ° С. Such a microclimate is most favorable for the prompt rooting of cuttings. Avoid getting into the container with seedlings of direct sunlight, at this stage they are harmful to the plant.
9. The soil around the handle is moistened with a spray every day.. If the weather is hot for a long time, then twice a day. This should be done carefully, trying to prevent water from entering the needles, in order to avoid the onset of putrefactive processes.
10. After 8-9 weeks, it will be clear which cuttings were able to take root, and which failed to take root, they can be thrown away. If the landing procedure was carried out in the spring, then by this time the second half of June should come. In this case, cuttings that have taken root can be planted under the open sky in November. Summer material should be planted in open ground only for the next year. He should spend the winter at home, in a well-lit room, at a temperature of +9 ... + 15 ° С. As soon as spring warmth comes and weather conditions allow - to plant in open ground.

Layering

To breed thawed layering is a simple and fairly effective method of propagation.. Its main advantage is the speed with which you can get a new plant.

The essence of the method is as follows: the lower branch of the thuja is pressed to the soil, and with the help of a staple or piece of wire, is fixed. The branch pretty soon takes root, and after a few weeks you can expect the appearance of a certain number of seedlings. After the young shoots have real full roots, it can be planted.

Root division

Thaw can be propagated by this method with the help of young plants, since their root is easier to separate than in adult shrubs.

The procedure for obtaining new plants is as follows:

1. In early June, dig up a young healthy thuja and transplant it into a fertile substrate (equal parts of turf, peat, sand and humus). Thuja needs to be rooted to a depth of no more than 15-17 cm. With this planting, the roots will begin to grow quickly and you can get several young from one plant.
2. At the very beginning of autumn, dig a plant and carefully separate several processes from the common root. Transplant the obtained processes immediately to a permanent place, and grow like a normal tree.

Permanent landing

You need to transplant thuja to a place of constant growth in good weather, when there is confidence that there will be no return frosts. The most favorable period is from late spring to early summer. Keep in mind that plants older than three years are better able to take root in a new place.

Although the thuja is not capricious, a place for her is better to choose a well-lit by the sun. The sun's rays contribute to the speedy growth of green mass and better formation of the crown.

Video: How to plant a coniferous plant

It is believed that it is better to grow autumn and spring seedlings in schools - in common areas where thuja cuttings grow, and grown in a generative way, until they reach the age of 3 years. I.e, autumn cuttings are sent to grow in school in the spring, and spring - in the fall of the current season.

There are five main types of arborvitae, two of which, western and eastern, most common in the former USSR. Varieties of western thuja love a slightly acidic soil; for the eastern, slightly calcareous soil is more acceptable. In any case, the earth must conduct moisture well. When digging a bucket of peat per 1 m², it must be added to the scarce soil.

Trees are planted at a distance of 40-50 cm from one another. Thujas are finally seated in places of growth, in the fourth or fifth year of life.

The step-by-step transplant procedure is as follows:

1. Plant bark is marked with chalk from a certain side of the world, for example, from the east. At a distance of 40 cm from the trunk, a shrub is dug in a circle. A round trench should be obtained with a depth of 25-30 cm. The excavated earth is not thrown away, it will be needed in the future.
2. Using a shovel as a lever, thuja along with a root lump, they pod and, holding the trunk with their hands, carefully remove it from the ground, trying to lose as little soil as possible from the roots. The plant is loaded onto a wheelbarrow and transported to a previously prepared pit (60–70 cm deep and 80–90 in diameter). The bottom of the pit is covered with drainage (expanded clay or its mixture with brick, pebbles and sand). A layer of soil mix from the soil selected from the former place of growth of thuja and peat, with the addition of universal fertilizers for conifers, is laid on it.
3. The thuja with the root lump is placed in the pit so that the mark on the cortex is directed in the same direction as in the same place. The tree is sprinkled with earth, observing the position of the root neck - it should protrude 3-5 cm from the ground.

Further care

It should be remembered that thuja is primarily an ornamental plant, and its main function is aesthetic. The tree should be pleasing to the eye, and for this it needs to look good. In order for the thuja to have a beautiful green needles and graceful shape, it needs appropriate care.

Watering

After the thuja has been landed in a permanent place, at first it should be watered quite abundantly. Depending on the size of the plant - from 10 to 40 liters of water weekly.

A young tree is best watered by sprinkling with water protected in the sun. With this irrigation, water nourishes the root system and soil near the tree well. In addition, moisture removes dirt from the needles, which facilitates breathing and promotes better growth of thuja.

Top dressing

If you applied fertilizers when planting a tree, you don’t need to feed the plant for the first couple of seasons. Otherwise, the fertilizer application scheme is as follows:

• in early spring, before the swelling of the kidneys, 20 g nitroammofoski for each plant. From mid-spring to the end of June, universal dressings for conifers are introduced, such as Fertika Lux, Aquarin, MicroMix, Green Needle, etc., according to the instructions;
• universal fertilizers should be applied, on average, twice a month. For example, a good tool is Kemira Universal (50 g / 1 m²);
• when applying fertilizer, emphasis should be placed on potassium and magnesium, less on phosphorus, and pay very little attention to nitrogen;
• in August-September make only magnesia (1 tbsp. l. per 1 tree), potassium salt or saltpeter in the same volume. Do this at any time, once during the specified period;
• magnesium is responsible for the needles to be beautiful and healthy. If you do not want the crown to have a rusty color, but please the eye with a beautiful emerald shade, apply a single dose of 20 g of magnesium sulfate per 1 m² of soil.

Important! When applying fertilizing for all conifers, remember: they do not need fertilizers in the quantities that are necessary for deciduous. These plants do not drop foliage, do not bear fruit, take nitrogen from the atmosphere, and excess fertilizer can burn roots and cause yellowing of needles.

Top dressing is very important if the soil in your area is quite poor.. The way the thuja will take root in a new place in the first two to three years is crucial for the further state of the tree. If it is forced to grow on scarce soils, your task is to facilitate the adaptation of the plant as much as possible and nourish it with useful substances and minerals, but not to overdo it.

Besides, should not be ignored and organic: in early spring, every 2 years, you can feed the thuja with a well-rotted mullein, chicken or pigeon droppings, or humus. For plants of the western type, it is necessary annually, during autumn digging, to add 0.5 l of wood ash per 1 m². You can also dissolve this ash in a bucket of water, and water the near-trunk area of ​​the tree.

Important! Coniferous plants do not need nitrogen in such quantities as deciduous, and even harmful after the beginning of July. This mineral contributes to the growth of green mass and the active growth of shoots that do not have time to get stronger before the onset of winter and can freeze.

Loosening and mulching

As you know, thuja roots grow immediately below the surface of the earth, so after watering, loosen the soil gently and no deeper than 5–7 cm. Loosening of the periostemal area is necessary after each watering, in order to avoid the formation of a crust that interferes with normal aeration of the roots.

After plowing, the soil should be mulched with pine bark, sawdust and peat. This measure prevents the evaporation of moisture.

Particular attention should be paid to winter and first spring watering.. They should be plentiful enough, autumn - in order to saturate the roots with moisture for the future if possible, the second - to quench thirst after winter. It should be watered in the winter, during thaws.

Winter preparations

Until the thuja is 5 years old, she should necessarily create a winter shelter. Pine spruce is best suited for these purposes. But one shelter from pine branches is not enough, in order to properly prepare the tree for winter, it is necessary to perform a number of the following measures:

1. Shortly before the onset of the first frosts - abundant pre-winter watering. The soil around the arborvitae, and the space between neighboring plants (if you have several trees), cover with a new mulch consisting of pine sawdust and bark, peat and straw.
2. The crown of the tree is tied with a soft strong rope, pulling the branches to the trunk. This must be done so that the mass of snow does not break them.
3. Take spruce branches, preferably pine, and close the tree with it. Start from the bottom, well covering the trunk, and build a shelter as high as possible, for young plants - to the top of the head. An adult thuja can not be covered, unless, slightly insulate the trunk near the ground. But you need to mulch the soil.
4. If the air temperature drops below -13 ° C, the young tree should be covered with a material such as spunbond, they also cover the plants with the advent of spring to prevent sunburn of needles.

Trimming and Shaping

For the first time, thawing is sheared immediately after transplanting to a new place. Then sanitary cuttings should be carried out regularly, with the onset of spring and shaping - at any time of the year. The purpose of sanitary scraps is the removal of needles frozen over the winter and thinning out excess green mass.

Forming cuts are made to shape the crown. Thuya loves such events and answers them with a thick and magnificent crown. This type of trimming begins to be done in the spring and continues until the fall, and in the summer it is only slightly adjusted, introducing light touches into the overall picture.

There are several types of crowns:

• pyramidal;
• columnar;
• spherical.

To give the plant more bushiness, it should pinch top shoots.

Forming pruning the first time they do it in the fourth year of life of the thuja. During the season, perform one shaping and 2-3 corrective trimming.

Concerning sanitary pruningThis procedure requires attention rather than aesthetic taste. In the spring, the main task is to remove the frozen and dry shoots.

Important! You should not do major pruning later than the second half of July, only corrective ones. Serious pruning stimulates the growth of young shoots, which may not withstand the frost.

A few tips will help you trim correctly:

• Before starting the procedure, look around the plant, mentally give it the form that you want to see;
• pruning should be done on a dry cloudy day, in order to avoid the formation of rusty spots on the needles, which may appear as a result of excessive evaporation of moisture;
• do not cut thaw after rainfall, this can lead to pests and cause disease;
• when trimming, use special patterns, they will help give the tree the desired shape. In addition, there is twine to form the crown;
• Use only a sharpened pruner to prune.

Video: Thuja trim

Disease and Pest Prevention

Thuja is quite resistant to diseases and pests, especially if you comply with sanitary standards, perform crown treatment on time and feed.

For the prevention of diseases, the following measures should be taken:

• thuja plantings should not be too dense, for example, in a hedge, the distance between adjacent trees is at least 0.5 m;
• regularly trim and shape the crown - its excessive thickening is a favorable environment for the development of diseases and pests;
• apply fertilizers on time, top dressing has a beneficial effect on the state of the immune system, which prevents the plant from getting sick;
• favorable conditions for the development of the fungus are high temperature and humidity. If it is difficult to do something with the temperature, then you can affect the moisture level - do not pour much melted water under irrigation;
• disinfect the garden tool well, and quarantine newly acquired plants.

Did you know? Currently, in wildlife, there are thuja over the age of 10 centuries. That is, these trees are the same age as the Baptism of Russia (988).

However, preventive measures are not always sufficient to avoid an outbreak or an invasion of pests. The greatest danger is viral diseases. Symptoms and treatments for the most common ones are described below.

Fusarium The fungus first affects the tips of the shoots, which is expressed in their yellowing to the appearance of an orange plaque - these are disputes. In case of detection of such signs, with the help of an acute secateurs, all shoots and needles with signs of the disease are removed.

After trimming the diseased areas, thuja should be treated with antifungal drugsFor example, Topsin M 500 SC. Preventive treatment with the same preparation and plants nearby, as well as the adjacent territory, should be carried out. This measure aims to prevent an outbreak of the disease throughout the garden. Reprocessing is performed after 10-14 days.

Spotting. The fact that the thuja fell ill with spotting will be indicated by a yellow coating on the needles and shoots. First, small spots appear, which eventually increase in size and merge into one large array of yellow, the color of the needles becomes brownish.

For treatment, first remove the affected areas, then apply "Abiga-Peak", "HOM" in the manner described in the manual.

Gray mold. The disease is difficult to detect at the initial stage, when it shows characteristic signs, most often it is too late to treat the tree - it needs to be removed and burned away from the site, and the place where the thuja grew is well treated with fungicidal preparations. Signs of mold - the first to see watery formations on the shoots, which soon acquire a rusty hue, and later turn white.

Root rot. At the first stages of the disease, thuja flakes turn yellow, then the bark cracks, from the bottom up, starting from the base of the trunk. Unfortunately, the most effective method of treatment is the destruction of the diseased arborvitae (burn outside the garden) and thorough fungicidal treatment of nearby plants and soil. In addition, you must remove all organic residues of the diseased tree.

Late blight. Perhaps the most dangerous fungal disease. It is difficult to detect at the very beginning of development, since the first disease affects the lower branches located at the very bottom. This branch dries up and soon perishes, and late blight affects the whole tree. At this stage, the bark and scales become brown, the root neck begins to rot, which leads to an early death of the plant.

The one suffering from late blight is uprooted and destroyed away from the summer cottage. The soil in the garden, trees and shrubs growing nearby, are treated with preparations such as "Bosept" or "Bravo", according to the instructions.

For the treatment of most of the fungal diseases, use such drugs as Topsin, Sarfun, Rovral FLO, etc.

Video: Diseases of thuja: causes and treatment

Of the pests that pose the greatest danger to thuja, we can distinguish coniferous aphids and false shields. The fact that insects have chosen a tree can be recognized by the crumbling yellowed needles.

Against pests, the preparations "Karbofos", "Rogor", "Decis" are quite effective, which need to be treated with a tree in early spring, before the active sap flow begins. Use for the same purpose "Actellik", "Chlorophos". Treatment with drugs is carried out in the third decade of June and repeated, after 15 days.

Thuja is able to decorate any personal plot, it looks great as a decorative element of landscape design of streets, boulevards, squares and parks. Despite the fact that the tree has a magnificent graceful appearance, it has quite moderate requirements in terms of care.