Thuja Woodwardi: description, planting, cultivation

The article highlights the thuja Woodwardi: description of the variety, planting rules, care, protection from pests, diseases.

Thuja Woodwardi: variety description, basic information

Thuja Woodwardi: photo of the variety

Thuja is a very beautiful plant, most varieties of this tree have increased resistance to frost and severe frost. Thuja is usually planted on the plot as a decoration for the plot, as it looks great and makes the plot look more graceful. This crop can be planted in areas with any climate, it takes root well in any territory.
The culture has many varieties that differ from each other in height, width, foliage color, and also in the shape of the needles.

Woodwardi's spherical thuja is an artificially created dwarf hybrid, it was created at the beginning of the 20th century and over time began to gain popularity, after which it began to be grown by almost every gardener. Very often Woodwardy can be found on the territory of guesthouses for recreation or near hotels.

Western thuja Woodwardi is considered a very bright ornamental plant, this variety is incredibly beautiful. Woodwardy is a shrub that can develop on a site for decades. The crown of the variety is very dense, without gaps and has a round shape. The variety has very soft branches and foliage, so they are quickly pruned without any effort. Woodwardy is considered an unpretentious plant, since basic care will be enough for him. The shrub grows at the slowest possible pace; during the season, thuja can grow no more than 5 centimeters. An adult thuja is considered after 10-12 years have passed, the dimensions of an adult woodward thuja plant are 50-60 centimeters high, and the width of the bush reaches 60 centimeters. After the plant turns 30-35 years old, the height can be about 130 centimeters.
Thuja is highly resistant to frost and, in general, to temperature changes.

Thuja Woodwardi: photo, what the variety looks like

Thuja Woodwardi in landscape design: photo

• The crown has a round shape, from a distance it looks like a ball. Many shoots form the shape of the plant. The crown of thuja has a green-beige color. Interestingly, the top stems are much shorter than the middle or bottom of the plant, the stems grow straight and branch out towards the top.
• This variety has a very dense crown, small scales are present on it. The crown is strongly attached to the shoot, usually its average length is about 5 centimeters. The needles are colored evenly, without bald spots, and every year it remains the same, without changing. The foliage of the thuja is very tough, but it does not prick, so it is impossible to get hurt. Every year, the plant throws off the old crown, which is renewed with a young crown.
• Cones are present, but their number is very small. They are brown-beige in color. Just like the needles, they have scales, increase in size annually and produce yellow seeds, which have thin and transparent lionfish.
• Woodwardy belongs to dwarf varieties, since their height is quite small compared to other varieties, but the advantage of dwarf thujas is that they are wind-resistant and do not respond to changing environmental factors and temperatures. Thuja can also be planted on the floor in shaded areas and in sunny places.
• The root system is mixed and has long roots.The roots growing on the sides are tightly intertwined and thereby deliver as many useful trace elements as possible from the soil.

Note: Seeds of this variety can be planted, as they retain all the hereditary information about the variety.

Thuja Woodwardi in landscape design

This variety is very often used by many designers who equip large garden plots. Designers choose this culture because it looks great on the site, making it a cozier and more unique place. Due to the fact that thuja has slow growth, it can be formed once and not bother with it for 3-6 years. Thuja can be formed under some kind of statue or it will be given another non-standard shape, and it will hold it for a long time without any amendments.

Also, this variety can be combined with other crops or varieties. You can create combinations of plants of different families, as they will not interfere with each other and fully develop. The plant can be planted alone, but in this case, designers give it an interesting shape.

For example, the most famous compositions are the following: planting a thuja near a path that resembles a curb or central installation of a thuja, or a combination of lilies and thuja.

How to propagate Woodwardy's globular thuja

This variety can be propagated in several ways: by seeds, cuttings and layering. In the reproduction of this plant, primacy is given to the generative method, since it is the most productive, but it has a negative side, in the form of a long period, on average, which is 36 months. The vegetative method is not as productive, but it happens much faster.

Seed use

This method is carried out only in the autumn, since it is then that you can collect the cones and pull out the seeds from there. After collecting them, they are immediately seated in pots or indoors. During all this time, until the beginning of the spring season, each seed goes through certain stages of development and crawl to the surface. In the second half of May, the first sprouts begin to appear, which must be looked after.
They need to be watered and protected from frost in order for them to develop well. Next year, in the middle of summer, you need to choose the strongest seedlings and dive in pots, next year they will need to be transplanted to a permanent place in open ground.

Cuttings

The use of cuttings is considered the second most popular way to reproduce thuja. Two-year-old shoots will serve as planting material for such a planting of thuja Woodwardi. Strong branches are selected and cut off, the stalk should be about 28-34 centimeters long. After cutting off the branches, the plant must be processed using a manganese solution of 4-6%, after which it can be planted in the soil. Throughout the summer, the thuja must be watered, and with the onset of frost, transplant and cover. After winter, the thuja will begin to form the initial shoots and then the thuja is planted in a permanent place.

Breeding propagation

This method of reproduction involves the use of shoots that will be buried in the ground and begin to exist as a separate organism, forming its own root system.
First, you need to select several lower stems and bury them in holes, the depth of which should be about 7 centimeters. After that, a year later, the root system will appear and the thuja can be transplanted to another place.
This method is considered the fastest, but not very efficient, as the branch may not form the root system.

Note: All seedlings should be covered with some kind of material for the winter.

General information on planting western thuja Woodwardy

The planting process must be done very carefully so that the roots of the plant are not touched.Before carrying out the process, it is necessary to process the root system using a manganese solution, place the roots in the solution for 4 hours and after Kornevin, the root system should stay in this solution for 2-2.5 hours.
If the generative method was used when growing the seedling, then the planting is carried out along with the soil from the pot. If dry roots are present, they must be removed and treated with the same means.
If the seedling was purchased in a specialized store or nursery, then no measures should be taken before planting. Since in nurseries, such processing is regularly carried out.

When to plant thuja

An adult thuja shrub is considered one of the most frost-resistant plants. It can withstand temperatures as low as -38 degrees, while such frost will not affect the functioning, development and growth of the plant in any way.
Of course, thujas that were recently planted are not so stable, but they can still withstand low temperatures.
Experts do not recommend carrying out an autumn planting, since the risk that the thuja will die increases. It can only be produced at warm temperatures, usually such planting is done in the southern regions. In other areas, such planting is carried out only in warm autumn and well-warmed soil, about + 10-15 degrees.
Therefore, thuja is planted either in autumn or in spring, depending on the area of ​​planting and the temperature of the season.

Where to plant thuja

Wurvardi is very fond of light and warmth, so the place should be well lit and not have strong winds or drafts. The place can be semi-shaded, this will not affect the plant in any way. Wurvardi is not only frost-resistant, but also highly resistant to drought, but does not tolerate excess moisture in the air or soil. Therefore, moisture should be moderate. There should be no bodies of water, swamps, or groundwater near the landing site. All of this will have an impact on the thuya, and at the same time not very good.
The best place for landing is considered to be a small hill, as there are usually no waters nearby.

Soil preparation

The soil should be light and fertile, as well as well loosened so that air can easily penetrate into the soil. In no case should the acidity of the soil be increased. Otherwise, the crown will grow unevenly and the brightness of the needles will decrease.
Before planting, you need to dig up the area well, thereby loosening it. With increased acidity, it is necessary to add alkaline agents to the soil, which will lower the acidity. You should also feed the soil with a mixture of sand, torus, turf, compost and phosphate.

Planting instructions

Before planting, in 48 hours it is necessary to prepare a hole in which the plant will be planted. It should be of medium depth, about 60 centimeters and an average diameter of about 55 centimeters. This hole must be well shed so that moisture gets into the deep layers of the soil.

1.First, you need to install a drain. For this, expanded clay, broken brick or pebbles must be poured at the bottom of the soil. The layer should be about 25 centimeters.
2. Then the drainage is covered with soil with fertilizer and a small mound is formed.
3.In this mound, the root system of the thuja is established.
4. The roots are covered with soil with fertilizer so that the neck of the roots looks out 3 centimeters from the ground.
5. The soil is well compacted and spilled with warm water.
6. After the water has been absorbed, mulching must be carried out to keep it in the soil. For mulch, you can use peat, wood chips, or hay.

Note: If you want to create a live thuja fence, then you need to leave about 70 centimeters between crops.

Thuja Woodwardi: description of leaving

Watering

Thuja needs basic care as she doesn’t require more. Basic care will keep it looking healthy and keep it safe from pests and diseases.
It is necessary to water the variety about twice in 7 days, such watering is carried out only during the first 4 to four years, then it decreases and decreases to twice a month. Watering depends on the weather, during drought it is necessary to water much more often than 2 times every 30 days. Before watering, all debris and weeds should be removed, and after watering, the soil should be loosened.

Fertilizer

In order for the thuja to grow evenly, it must be fed. Fertilizer is applied only 36-40 months after transplanting into open ground. All those nutrients that were introduced into the soil will be consumed during this time, then they will run out and it will be necessary to fertilize. If you carry out top dressing in the spring, then you need to apply potash or phosphorus fertilizer, and if in the summer, then you need to apply organic fertilizer.

Pruning

It is not necessary to trim the thuja as it grows slowly. The only thing that needs to be done is sanitary pruning. It consists in pruning dry and diseased shoots, parts of needles.
Formation is performed at the request of the gardener. If you like the natural shape of the bush, then the shaping is not done. But, and if you are a dreamer and want to do something original with thuja, then you can give it a shape.
All trimming and shaping should be carried out only in warm weather, when there is no scorching sun or rain.

Preparing for the winter period

Since thuja perfectly tolerates various changes in temperature, it does not need to be especially prepared for the winter period, it will perfectly endure wintering without shelter. Only at a young age, mulching with a thick layer may be necessary, since young thujas cannot tolerate such severe frosts as already adults. Mulching can be done with soil, hay or other material.
Before wintering, you should spud the plant, make a layer of mulch thicker, cover the crown with material that will repel moisture and cover the bush with snow.

Protection

Due to the poor tolerance of excess moisture, the plant can get sick with late blight. This fungus attacks the plant and it starts to rot. To avoid this problem, you need to install drainage and monitor the watering of the plant. In case of infection, remove the infected parts and treat with antifungal drugs or a solution of Bordeaux liquid. Gardeners usually treat the thuja with Cartocide.

Of the pests, thuja can be infected with aphids, they get rid of it using a soapy solution, moths, Fumitox will help get rid of moths, and a spider mite, colloidal sulfur will help get rid of it.
In order for the thuja to be healthy and various pests do not settle on it, it is necessary to carry out preventive treatment with various antifungal drugs.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to say that the Woodwardi variety is worthy of attention, and every gardener should get acquainted with this culture. After all, Woodwardy has a high resistance to frost, drought, has a slow growth, which allows you to rarely form and cut a plant. Also, this variety decorates the garden area, making it more comfortable for you and your guests.

Tuya Woodwardi: video