I moved a 2 year old Arborvitae from one spot to another last July. It wasn't in the best shape because it was on the north side and didn't really get much sun. The new location is now on the south side with full sun. I kept it watered and it seemed to be doing ok. We get fairly cold winters so I was unsure if it would make it. It now (in May as I write this... the following year) doesn't seem to be doing very well as all the leaves are brown and brittle. I have been giving it lots of water but I'm pretty sure it's not going to recover. The transplant and the cold winter done did it in I'm thinking. Will keep watering it and see if any new growth comes up. Right now it looks like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. In hindsight I think I should have wrapped it for the winter.
I had a lot of Arborvitaes when we lived in Oregon. They all did very well, no problems. Now we live in Nevada and winter is cold. Bought couple of Arborvitaes and they did not make through the first winter. So, I gave up on them and bought Alberta Spruce instead.
I have winter damage and need to know how likely it will recover but first I need to cut back the dead. Do I cut back all the way to the trunk. Will new branches form. Right now they almost look like topiaries with the lower half dead? Thank you.
The branches below the top will rarely grow in full again but when it’s young like these, the existing branches might fill in those spots. You want to check for spider mites. Many arborvitaes stressed at Lowes and Home Depot have spider mite infestations. Look for browning and fine webbing. Like spiders web almost. When it comes to fertilizer…. You don’t have to stress over the brand. It’s all marketing. It’s better for the soil to use an organic fertilizer but you can really use any higher nitrogen fertilizer. Use sparingly, generally ever greens do not want a ton of fertilizer all at once.
Unfortunately I totally killed one this summer. :( For the last five years it got trickle watering due to a leaking piple, (whch got repaired last winter.) I'm in Arizona and we had a brutal summer, so I put the hose on trickle to water it once a week. On the second week I went to do errands and it got the trickle water for about 3 more hours than I wanted. Within a week, she was a goner. Her brown over took her and then her branches splayed outwards. Sigh. I'm going to wait for the heat to diminish a little so I can put a tarp underneath to catch all those crunchy little needles/leaves when I cut the branches off. She was a tower, now she looks like a blown down umbrella. There is one more not to far from here that I didn't really water because the roots go into my crawlspace and this one is also splaying open but is still green.
Hi great and informative video! I was hoping you provide some advice. My townhome has a large old growth arborvitae tree. One the front side I have browning as well as some branches that are bare. It is about 24 x 24-inch patch. The side towards the wall I trimmed down to control animals from getting up onto my roof but as those branches didn't have much space to grow, the trim took it back a few inches from the stump. I have two questions: Is it possible to revive the front of the tree where there is no green remaining? Also, will the side facing the wall grow back or is it done now? Thank you!
Questions... if you cut the branches off will the plant grow them back? Also, I planted 6 of these and now the centers are browning out and one the exact same browning at the bottom of the plant. I have been told that this is normal shedding and I want to believe it to be true though my OCD is eating at me telling me to pull them and plant new ones.
If your arborvitae are green on the outside and looking flush on the outside, then the browning in the middle can be attributed to shedding and/or lack of sun towards the middle due to a fuller plant. Are you getting any new growth? I haven't seen where an aborvitae grows a branch back, in terms of self regeneration. The wider it grows then the more it could flush-out and fill gaps along the way over the course of several growing seasons. The shrub with the brown at the bottom; is lacking sun. If it's too dry it could result in browning. I had a few thay went bad this year because of the drought and I didn't have enough mulching material around them. Be sure it has some moisture for the winter, but no need to "waterboard" the plant. A good feed for arborvitae is Holly-tone. Did you plant your arborvitae this year?
I have used Holly-Tone on Emerald Greens and have had great success. Plant-tone can actually be used in the growing season, where as Holly-Tone is typically a twice a year application of fall and early Spring. Hope this helps
I have an arborvitae that appears to be dying slowly. The color is kind of a pale green. I'm not sure what to do. I've watered it and put down some compost. My other arborvitaes are thriving.
Have you had a lot of rain or standing water lately? Also, do you know if you have clay soil? It could be stressed from overwatering or the opposite. How long have you had the aborvitaes planted? I've had this happen to me before several years ago, and the arborvitae died all the way. Looking back on it, I believe I didn't properly plant it for the soil. If the soil is constantly damp hours after watering, then that would indicate too much watering. If it is starting to feel brittle and dry then that would indicate a lack of water. Is the coloration all over or in a specific area? I will try my best to help, if I can. Also, IRON is helps to produce chlorophyll. You could try something like Miloganite (which is what I use on my lawn) to help restore color. It releases nitrogen and iron and can be used during the summer.
I have a row of 5 arborvitaes. All are between 6-7 feet and look healthy, except for the 2nd. 1 & 2 were planted in Oct. 2022, and 3 thru 5 were planted more than a decade ago. The foilage on the face side of the 2nd (exposed to the sun) is dying from the bottom up. But the backside looks dark green. We are experincing a drought. So I water about every 10 days. Not sure why tree #2 is dying.
@@nj2mddude205 I would check the soil more frequently. If the soil is dry to the touch before you water, then it may require more frequent intervals of watering. If the ground is soggy then that would be overwatering. Most likely the former. The other reason for the problem could be pests, but it doesn't sound like it's the problem. Do you see any mites? An explanation for arborvitae #2 having problems vs the others: Arborvitaes 3-5 being 10 years old, do not have as hard of a time finding water as their roots are deeply established thus not suffering from lack of water during this drought. Although aborvitaes 1 & 2 were planted at the same time, #1 isn't in as much of competition for water, where as #2 is closer towards establish plant #3. #1 benefits from gathering water on its non-competitve side. I use a rule, that plants establish their roots in year 2. So in 2022, that was the inital planting which, usually doesn't off much growth, if any. Year 1, 2023, the plant is attempting to spread its roots and adapt to its environment. Year 2, in 2024, the plant should need less maintenance and starts to become fully established (outside of any abnormal circumstances). All in all, it sounds like it most likely needs more water, but not drowning. Since you planted it last year, you could use something like Plant-tone to help to revive the plant to full health. Sometimes patience is required with these evergreens. If the situation worsens to browning, then some pruning/steering may need to be done. If in the fall you truly don't want to deal with the shrubs timeliness of recovery, then the fastest solution would be replacement. Let me know any status changes with your arborvitae. Again, I hope this helps. 🙏🏽
@@Garden.of.D I appreciate your detailed response. I followed your advice and pruned some of the brown foilage today and saw new growth underneath. I'll give it more water. Hopefully, the water will revive the tree.
Hi just wanted your opinion on my tree issue. So I planted 14 Arborvitae’s two years ago and they were doing OK. They were not the best trees when I bought them and they do not have a main beam as It seems most arborvitae do. Instead they have a bunch of smaller branches and they actually remind me more of a shrub than a tree if that makes sense. Long story short heavy snow this winter crushed them like a pancake. I went outside and helped them out the best I could. They are now standing upright, but they have lost 75% of their needles. Should I give up on them or give them one season to see if they come back? Getting a little frustrated at this point.
Hi! I would say that if you're wanting results after the first year of regrowth, then you may be disappointed in how little the arborvitae have changed. It is going to take several seasons to flush out the Emerald Greens. If you do want to be patient with the regrowth, then you could use a slow release fertilizer to help care for the plant. The Holly-tone can be applied in spring and fall. Seeing that you lost a lot of foliage, there won't be a normal amount of photosynthesis happening this growing season. As long as you have outter foliage, then your arborvitae will survive. (The middle foliage was already dead due to the lack of sunlight, because of how dense the emeralds grow). Alternatively, if you do choose to start over, you could try the Giant Green Arborvitae. These will grow at a faster rate, and are more resistant to keeping its foliage through the same type of storm/weather. Be aware, that they do grow larger, so depending on your space/area, you may need to prune them annually in order to maintain its size (later on). Hope this helps, or let me know if have more questions. Have a good day!
How are they doing now? I have one that is hanging on by just a thread. It went through a pretty traumatic winter though so I'm not giving it much hope. It looks like a Charlie Brown Christmas Tree sad to say. Been watering it regularly to try to bring it back but I'm pretty sure that if it doesn't show some form of growth in the next month or so it will be time to put it to rest for good.
I have a question we planted 12 of these and we went to another country for a year and we came back and most of them are dead and they are all color brown what should I do cut the branches and water them alot or restart ?
I personally like Hollytone for it's slow release properties and I've had experiece with it successfully flushing out my evergreens. If you're wary, you can try Osmocote, but Hollytone is for evergreens (on the bag, under the name: "Evergreen and Azelea Food").
Making a new video. The alternative would be to use Plant-Tone. Although, Hollytone isn't the recommended fertilizer, I have had success with that fertilizer when used in the fall for overwintering.
Around here those arborvitae are deer food the first winter. I switched to dwarf Alberta spruce and they do very well.
That's a great decision. YES, these plants are not deer resistant, unfortunately ☹
I moved a 2 year old Arborvitae from one spot to another last July. It wasn't in the best shape because it was on the north side and didn't really get much sun. The new location is now on the south side with full sun. I kept it watered and it seemed to be doing ok. We get fairly cold winters so I was unsure if it would make it. It now (in May as I write this... the following year) doesn't seem to be doing very well as all the leaves are brown and brittle. I have been giving it lots of water but I'm pretty sure it's not going to recover. The transplant and the cold winter done did it in I'm thinking. Will keep watering it and see if any new growth comes up. Right now it looks like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. In hindsight I think I should have wrapped it for the winter.
I had a lot of Arborvitaes when we lived in Oregon. They all did very well, no problems. Now we live in Nevada and winter is cold. Bought couple of Arborvitaes and they did not make through the first winter. So, I gave up on them and bought Alberta Spruce instead.
I have winter damage and need to know how likely it will recover but first I need to cut back the dead. Do I cut back all the way to the trunk. Will new branches form. Right now they almost look like topiaries with the lower half dead? Thank you.
The branches below the top will rarely grow in full again but when it’s young like these, the existing branches might fill in those spots. You want to check for spider mites. Many arborvitaes stressed at Lowes and Home Depot have spider mite infestations. Look for browning and fine webbing. Like spiders web almost. When it comes to fertilizer…. You don’t have to stress over the brand. It’s all marketing. It’s better for the soil to use an organic fertilizer but you can really use any higher nitrogen fertilizer. Use sparingly, generally ever greens do not want a ton of fertilizer all at once.
Unfortunately I totally killed one this summer. :( For the last five years it got trickle watering due to a leaking piple, (whch got repaired last winter.) I'm in Arizona and we had a brutal summer, so I put the hose on trickle to water it once a week. On the second week I went to do errands and it got the trickle water for about 3 more hours than I wanted. Within a week, she was a goner. Her brown over took her and then her branches splayed outwards. Sigh. I'm going to wait for the heat to diminish a little so I can put a tarp underneath to catch all those crunchy little needles/leaves when I cut the branches off. She was a tower, now she looks like a blown down umbrella. There is one more not to far from here that I didn't really water because the roots go into my crawlspace and this one is also splaying open but is still green.
Hi great and informative video! I was hoping you provide some advice. My townhome has a large old growth arborvitae tree. One the front side I have browning as well as some branches that are bare. It is about 24 x 24-inch patch. The side towards the wall I trimmed down to control animals from getting up onto my roof but as those branches didn't have much space to grow, the trim took it back a few inches from the stump. I have two questions: Is it possible to revive the front of the tree where there is no green remaining? Also, will the side facing the wall grow back or is it done now? Thank you!
Questions... if you cut the branches off will the plant grow them back? Also, I planted 6 of these and now the centers are browning out and one the exact same browning at the bottom of the plant. I have been told that this is normal shedding and I want to believe it to be true though my OCD is eating at me telling me to pull them and plant new ones.
If your arborvitae are green on the outside and looking flush on the outside, then the browning in the middle can be attributed to shedding and/or lack of sun towards the middle due to a fuller plant. Are you getting any new growth?
I haven't seen where an aborvitae grows a branch back, in terms of self regeneration. The wider it grows then the more it could flush-out and fill gaps along the way over the course of several growing seasons.
The shrub with the brown at the bottom; is lacking sun. If it's too dry it could result in browning. I had a few thay went bad this year because of the drought and I didn't have enough mulching material around them. Be sure it has some moisture for the winter, but no need to "waterboard" the plant. A good feed for arborvitae is Holly-tone. Did you plant your arborvitae this year?
Yes it will grow ,when you cut it ,it will encourage the other branches to help it cover
Watch MI Gardeners video 4 min on with EGA trimming.
What fertilizer are you using?*
Guys I’m going nuts which is the best fertilizer for Emerald Greens, Holly-Tone Or Plant-Tone?
I have used Holly-Tone on Emerald Greens and have had great success. Plant-tone can actually be used in the growing season, where as Holly-Tone is typically a twice a year application of fall and early Spring. Hope this helps
It should be Planttone.
What about thinning on the bottoms? Mines full everywhere but looks like someone kick a soccor ball at the base of it
lollll same. except the soccer ball in my case is a 90 lb doberman that runs underneath the trees
Nice
Why are mines totally burnt orange? 😢
I have an arborvitae that appears to be dying slowly. The color is kind of a pale green. I'm not sure what to do. I've watered it and put down some compost. My other arborvitaes are thriving.
Have you had a lot of rain or standing water lately? Also, do you know if you have clay soil? It could be stressed from overwatering or the opposite. How long have you had the aborvitaes planted? I've had this happen to me before several years ago, and the arborvitae died all the way. Looking back on it, I believe I didn't properly plant it for the soil. If the soil is constantly damp hours after watering, then that would indicate too much watering. If it is starting to feel brittle and dry then that would indicate a lack of water. Is the coloration all over or in a specific area? I will try my best to help, if I can. Also, IRON is helps to produce chlorophyll. You could try something like Miloganite (which is what I use on my lawn) to help restore color. It releases nitrogen and iron and can be used during the summer.
I have a row of 5 arborvitaes. All are between 6-7 feet and look healthy, except for the 2nd. 1 & 2 were planted in Oct. 2022, and 3 thru 5 were planted more than a decade ago. The foilage on the face side of the 2nd (exposed to the sun) is dying from the bottom up. But the backside looks dark green. We are experincing a drought. So I water about every 10 days. Not sure why tree #2 is dying.
@@nj2mddude205 I would check the soil more frequently. If the soil is dry to the touch before you water, then it may require more frequent intervals of watering. If the ground is soggy then that would be overwatering. Most likely the former. The other reason for the problem could be pests, but it doesn't sound like it's the problem. Do you see any mites?
An explanation for arborvitae #2 having problems vs the others: Arborvitaes 3-5 being 10 years old, do not have as hard of a time finding water as their roots are deeply established thus not suffering from lack of water during this drought. Although aborvitaes 1 & 2 were planted at the same time, #1 isn't in as much of competition for water, where as #2 is closer towards establish plant #3. #1 benefits from gathering water on its non-competitve side.
I use a rule, that plants establish their roots in year 2. So in 2022, that was the inital planting which, usually doesn't off much growth, if any. Year 1, 2023, the plant is attempting to spread its roots and adapt to its environment. Year 2, in 2024, the plant should need less maintenance and starts to become fully established (outside of any abnormal circumstances).
All in all, it sounds like it most likely needs more water, but not drowning. Since you planted it last year, you could use something like Plant-tone to help to revive the plant to full health. Sometimes patience is required with these evergreens. If the situation worsens to browning, then some pruning/steering may need to be done. If in the fall you truly don't want to deal with the shrubs timeliness of recovery, then the fastest solution would be replacement. Let me know any status changes with your arborvitae. Again, I hope this helps. 🙏🏽
@@Garden.of.D I appreciate your detailed response. I followed your advice and pruned some of the brown foilage today and saw new growth underneath. I'll give it more water. Hopefully, the water will revive the tree.
@@nj2mddude205 Well new growth underneath is a great sign! I hope it comes back to normalcy. Let me know how the journey goes.
Hi just wanted your opinion on my tree issue. So I planted 14 Arborvitae’s two years ago and they were doing OK. They were not the best trees when I bought them and they do not have a main beam as It seems most arborvitae do. Instead they have a bunch of smaller branches and they actually remind me more of a shrub than a tree if that makes sense. Long story short heavy snow this winter crushed them like a pancake. I went outside and helped them out the best I could. They are now standing upright, but they have lost 75% of their needles. Should I give up on them or give them one season to see if they come back? Getting a little frustrated at this point.
Hi! I would say that if you're wanting results after the first year of regrowth, then you may be disappointed in how little the arborvitae have changed. It is going to take several seasons to flush out the Emerald Greens. If you do want to be patient with the regrowth, then you could use a slow release fertilizer to help care for the plant. The Holly-tone can be applied in spring and fall. Seeing that you lost a lot of foliage, there won't be a normal amount of photosynthesis happening this growing season. As long as you have outter foliage, then your arborvitae will survive. (The middle foliage was already dead due to the lack of sunlight, because of how dense the emeralds grow).
Alternatively, if you do choose to start over, you could try the Giant Green Arborvitae. These will grow at a faster rate, and are more resistant to keeping its foliage through the same type of storm/weather. Be aware, that they do grow larger, so depending on your space/area, you may need to prune them annually in order to maintain its size (later on). Hope this helps, or let me know if have more questions. Have a good day!
How are they doing now? I have one that is hanging on by just a thread. It went through a pretty traumatic winter though so I'm not giving it much hope. It looks like a Charlie Brown Christmas Tree sad to say. Been watering it regularly to try to bring it back but I'm pretty sure that if it doesn't show some form of growth in the next month or so it will be time to put it to rest for good.
I have a question we planted 12 of these and we went to another country for a year and we came back and most of them are dead and they are all color brown what should I do cut the branches and water them alot or restart ?
they are dead. you really have to baby these when you first plant them. you cant plant them and then skip town for a year 😂
Im confused why use Hollytone ? Are they acidic ?
I personally like Hollytone for it's slow release properties and I've had experiece with it successfully flushing out my evergreens. If you're wary, you can try Osmocote, but Hollytone is for evergreens (on the bag, under the name: "Evergreen and Azelea Food").
Making a new video. The alternative would be to use Plant-Tone. Although, Hollytone isn't the recommended fertilizer, I have had success with that fertilizer when used in the fall for overwintering.
The arborvitaes are shit... Let them get too unhealthy and they'll never come back to a thick nice tree again.
Plant tone. And you will have to move all your plants very soon
talk less / cut more
Cut more shrub?
Just do something in the video..I believe was his point
Did i miss something ? Whats the answer ? How to fix it - is buy another plant ? Lol
I had no idea trees have a front and a back side