Degroot's Spire Arborvitae
Thuja occidentalis 'Degroot's Spire'
A beautiful tall narrow American Arborvitae to separate multistory buildings. Rich green foliage takes on purple cast in winter. Twisted texture on pyramidal form tolerates shearing nicely for a more tailored column. Cold hardy and reliable for matched pairs, or lined up as a screen hedge. Evergreen.
| Botanical Pronunciation: | THOO-yuh ok-sih-den-TAY-liss |
| Key feature: | Tolerates Wet Soils |
| Plant type: | Conifer |
| Deciduous/evergreen: | Evergreen |
| Cold hardiness zones: | 3 - 8 |
| Light needs: | Partial to full sun |
| Sunset climate zones: | 1 - 9, 15 - 17, 21 - 24, 32 - 45 |
| Water Needs: | Needs regular watering - weekly, or more often in extreme heat. |
| Average landscape size: | Slow growing 20 ft. tall and 4 to 5 ft. wide. |
| Growth rate: | Slow |
| Growth habit: | Pyramidal |
| Special features: | Attracts Birds, Easy Care, North American Native, Year-round Interest |
| Landscape uses: | Container, Seacoast Exposure, Specimen, Very Wet Areas, Windbreak, Woodland Garden |
| Blooms: | Does not flower |
| Foliage color: | Green |
| Item no.: | 7281 |
| Retailers for this plant: |
Care Information
Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Watering can be reduced after establishment. Feed with a general purpose fertilizer before new growth begins in spring. Pruning time: spring.
Design Ideas
A valuable hardy alternative to cypress. Produces a fine columnar form used in rows, pairs or as a single specimen. Perfect for an evergreen privacy screen or rich background for water features and art. Performs well in the wet, low lying areas of your garden or natural swamps and bogs. Place in paired containers as a formal statement to an entry or drive.
Companion Plants
Pair with the large, textured leaves of Hydrangea, Sumac, Ninebark, and Cranberrybush. The sheared, pyramidal form can mimick a Mediterranean Cypress so create a cold hardy Mediterranean garden with Bog Rosemary, Meadow Sage, Grape, and Yarrow.
History
These conifers are members of the cypress family which includes many ornamental and timber genera. The common name is Arborvitae or Tree-of-Life due to its evergreen quality in the face of adversity as well as the medicinal properties of its sap, bark and twigs. There are five species native to North America and Eastern Asia with only three of these in cultivation. T. occidentalis is probably the most widely cultivated and is indigenous to a large range in eastern North America, most notably in wet forests and swamps. It was first cultivated in 1534 and the oldest known living specimen is thought to be over 1000 years old. This plant is attractive to deer who like to feast on the soft, winter foliage.
A beautiful tall narrow American Arborvitae to separate multistory buildings. Rich green foliage takes on purple cast in winter. Twisted texture on pyramidal form tolerates shearing nicely for a more tailored column. Cold hardy and reliable for matched pairs, or lined up as a screen hedge. Evergreen.
Care Information
Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Watering can be reduced after establishment. Feed with a general purpose fertilizer before new growth begins in spring. Pruning time: spring.
Design Ideas
A valuable hardy alternative to cypress. Produces a fine columnar form used in rows, pairs or as a single specimen. Perfect for an evergreen privacy screen or rich background for water features and art. Performs well in the wet, low lying areas of your garden or natural swamps and bogs. Place in paired containers as a formal statement to an entry or drive.
Companion Plants
Pair with the large, textured leaves of Hydrangea, Sumac, Ninebark, and Cranberrybush. The sheared, pyramidal form can mimick a Mediterranean Cypress so create a cold hardy Mediterranean garden with Bog Rosemary, Meadow Sage, Grape, and Yarrow.
History
These conifers are members of the cypress family which includes many ornamental and timber genera. The common name is Arborvitae or Tree-of-Life due to its evergreen quality in the face of adversity as well as the medicinal properties of its sap, bark and twigs. There are five species native to North America and Eastern Asia with only three of these in cultivation. T. occidentalis is probably the most widely cultivated and is indigenous to a large range in eastern North America, most notably in wet forests and swamps. It was first cultivated in 1534 and the oldest known living specimen is thought to be over 1000 years old. This plant is attractive to deer who like to feast on the soft, winter foliage.
| Botanical Pronunciation: | THOO-yuh ok-sih-den-TAY-liss |
| Key feature: | Tolerates Wet Soils |
| Plant type: | Conifer |
| Deciduous/evergreen: | Evergreen |
| Cold hardiness zones: | 3 - 8 |
| Light needs: | Partial to full sun |
| Sunset climate zones: | 1 - 9, 15 - 17, 21 - 24, 32 - 45 |
| Water Needs: | Needs regular watering - weekly, or more often in extreme heat. |
| Average landscape size: | Slow growing 20 ft. tall and 4 to 5 ft. wide. |
| Growth rate: | Slow |
| Growth habit: | Pyramidal |
| Special features: | Attracts Birds, Easy Care, North American Native, Year-round Interest |
| Landscape uses: | Container, Seacoast Exposure, Specimen, Very Wet Areas, Windbreak, Woodland Garden |
| Blooms: | Does not flower |
| Foliage color: | Green |
| Item no.: | 7281 |
print this page
elsewhere in
explore plant
elsewhere in
plant catalog
explore plant
collections
Monrovia soil products
The best fertilizer to use with this plant is All-Purpose Plant Food.view soil products