How to distribute shrubs and flowers around the thuja. Conifers in garden design, photos of compositions and recommendations

On long winter evenings we plan and draw planting schemes, says FORUMHOUSE user LidiiaS. Today we will talk about how users of our portal create compositions from conifers.

Going to the nursery in the spring and buying all the seedlings you like is a common, but worse option. You need to start creating a composition with a detailed study of the place on the site and drawing up a plan.

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At a minimum, draw up a planting plan yourself, taking into account the plant’s habit, soil requirements and lighting.

Designers usually recommend not limiting yourself to the plan, but also photographing the location of the future coniferous group from all points from which you will admire it. Look at the photos until you understand what kind of picture you want to see there.

The tallest trees are planted in the background so that they do not block the view of the lower ones.

The height of the plants should increase as they move away from the viewer.

The composition will be fully perceived at a distance equal to two of its heights. Usually this distance is sown with a lawn, and this combination allows you to kill another hare: against the background of a lawn, any Christmas tree looks more advantageous.

If we are talking about all-round viewing groups that can be viewed from all sides, then the largest tree is placed in the center; in the second and subsequent rows, the height of trees and bushes should decrease proportionally. The point is that they should not cover, but rather emphasize each other’s decorative qualities. Therefore, each subsequent row should be at least half as low as the previous one.

Many conifers grow slowly, and sometimes the composition of a spruce tree in the garden reaches its peak decorative value only after ten years. You can plant fir trees and thujas closer to each other, and after a few years, partially cut down those that will interfere. Or you can plant very small “more spacious” ones and wait patiently until they turn into the beauty and pride of the site. The wait is brightened up by planting tracts of perennials, roses, and so on. Until the tree skeleton grows, they will fill the space and delight your eye with flowering and texture. The first or second method to choose depends on the character of the garden owner.

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That is, it is completely unnecessary, having planted the little ones at once at large distances from each other, to sigh over the half-empty space all the time until they grow.

This composition with a spruce on the site will reach its peak decorative value in a few years.

When planting conifers in a composition, it is necessary to take into account their future size, so that they do not have to crowd together and close their crowns.

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For plants of the same tier - at a distance equal to the sum of their radii in an adult state (at least 10 years, and for large trees - 20-30 years).

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You type in the search engine the size (habitus) of the thuja Smaragd, for example. We look at the width of the plant, divide it in half and get the distance from the center of the planting hole to the edge of the crown. We measure half the width of the next seedling from this point - this will be the center of planting hole number two.

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Just don't overdo it, or it will look like this. The bottom picture is only planted conifers, the top pictures are after five years.

That is, the crowns of the plants in the composition will close together, but this should happen “not next year and not at the level of a meter from the ground.”

Experts recommend not to forget that color is one of the ways to assemble a group of conifers into one whole. You shouldn’t get too carried away with the different colors of pine needles and different shades of green: “they didn’t look good in childhood,” designers say in such cases.

There is a simple rule: a very small composition (three plants) - two colors, five - a maximum of three is needed, in a large composition the plants are placed in groups of the same color.

Coniferous groups are often diluted not only with perennials, but also with deciduous plants - this gives the garden new colors, evokes new feelings, and makes the garden design more interesting and multifaceted. The spacing of deciduous shrubs depends on whether they should fall under the tree canopy. So, the crowns of spruce and fir reach the ground, which means that the bushes must be planted beyond the diameter of the crown. Many shrubs in the garden look good when practically intertwined with each other. That is, more accurate distances can be calculated after you have completed the first part of the work: decide on the set of crops and varieties and their approximate location.

Ready-made coniferous compositions. Scheme

Here are the options for ready-made compositions with conifers:

Composition of coniferous plants, scheme No. 1.

1. Common juniper "Stricta"
2. Bladderwort "Darts Gold"
3. White dogwood "Aurea"
4. Rock juniper (virginian) “Blue Arrow”
5. European larch (deciduous) “Pendula”
6. Soft cuff “Auslese” + Tulips
7. Spiraea japonica "Gold Mound"
8. Low growing yew berry
9. Euphorbia cypress.

Today, thuja is becoming increasingly popular in the design of home gardens. Thujas have several dozen species and varieties: with needles of different colors, fast-growing and growing only a few millimeters per year, with a spherical, cone-shaped and columnar crown. Let's get acquainted with this wonderful tree and its use in the design of land plots.

Features: pros and cons

Some European varieties require shelter for the winter, but these types of thuja are very rare in our country; collectors purchase them and create appropriate conditions for them. Western thuja is planted in most areas.

Thuja occidentalis is more adapted to our climate; its homeland is Canada, where conditions are similar to average Russian ones. Thuja orientalis was brought to us from Asia, it is more capricious, does not like the north wind, it is better to plant it on the windward side of the house.

Thujas can grow in partial shade and sun and do not require frequent watering. They get along well with other plants.

The greenery of the thuja is very dense, the needles are soft, and the bark has a beautiful gray color. The color of the needles varies from yellow to dark green. The crown has the shape of a ball, cone or pyramid; the growth rate of some varieties is insignificant; they can maintain a constant emphasis in the composition for a long time; other varieties grow very quickly and require regular trimming of the crown.

The crown of such fast-growing thujas can be given any shape. Several centuries ago, French and English gardeners began to create entire architectural parks of balls, columns, pyramids, cubes and other geometric shapes from trimmed thujas. Today, a whole direction in landscape design has developed - topiary art of creating figures of animals, people, cars, famous art objects from soft pine needles.

The branches have a beautiful fan-shaped shape, sometimes twisted in a spiral. Thuja has a medicinal effect; its needles release phytoncides that disinfect and purify the air, so it is useful to plant it near a house or recreation area.

For all these qualities and external resemblance to the southern cypress, landscape designers of temperate latitudes fell in love with thuja. This coniferous plant is unpretentious and has a wide variety of varieties, which allows it to be included in various landscape compositions or used as a tapeworm. Let's consider what types of these wonderful conifers can be used for decorative landscaping of personal plots.

Types and varieties

Let's consider which varieties of western thuja are cultivated in the temperate climate of central Russia.

• Aurea– with yellow needles, in the shade it acquires green shades, which become darker in winter. It has thick needles, lends itself well to shaping, can be given any shape, due to its low growth (up to 2.5 meters) it can be used in compositions with conifers of other colors in the middle ground or with roses, hydrangeas, ferns in the background. Thanks to its yellow color, it can be included as an accent in hedges of darker varieties. Looks beautiful with purple Thunberg barberry. This variety has originally arranged branches, which further enhances its decorative qualities. The annual growth is only 5 centimeters. This must be taken into account when purchasing a variety for your site.

Young small specimens can be planted in flower beds with flower crops; they will not compete for space for a long time. If you want to create a large accent, you will have to wait a very long time for the desired decorative effect of this conifer, so it is better to buy an already mature large plant.

• Thuja Yellow Ribbon The young needles also have a yellow color, are well trimmed, and grow relatively slowly - 10 centimeters per year. Very winter-hardy. The crown is narrow cone-shaped.
• Thuja Mickey has similar characteristics, only its foliage is dark green and shiny.
• Albospicata reaches a height of 2.5 meters, the needles are the silver color of wormwood with white tips, which creates an additional play of light. This effect looks very beautiful in hedges. The crown of albospicata is very wide and occupies about a meter in diameter, this necessitates the need for additional space in the composition. Can be used as a separate decorative tree.

• Emerald– the most popular pyramidal thuja in landscape design. It is distinguished by its rich green color, thick crown, which is perfectly trimmed; in winter it darkens slightly. Thuja tolerates a wide variety of conditions from full shade to bright sun, is not demanding on watering and is resistant to decay, excellent frost resistance makes Smaragd indispensable for creating hedges. The height of an adult plant (about 3 meters) and a beautiful dense crown make it possible to use this thuja to create park alleys.

It can also be used as a background background for lower conifers and decorative flower arrangements.

• Has similar characteristics Thuja Brabant, but it is less winter-hardy and has a lighter crown, and has rapid growth (up to 50 centimeters per year).
• Globoza. An adult thuja does not need pruning; it has dense, bright green, spherical needles up to 1 meter high and wide. Looks good both when planted alone and in combination with creeping junipers. Very loved by designers for its neat round shape. It is often the main accent in floral arrangements.

• Thuja Reingold. It has unusual golden-bronze needles that turn pink in spring. It will be an excellent decoration for a rock garden or flower bed. An adult plant is 1 meter high and quite winter-hardy.
• Thuya Danika, low - up to 0.7 meters, with a round, dense crown of rich green color. Very good in alpine slides or in outdoor pots on an open terrace, as a border to a coniferous composition.

• Looks like her Thuja Woodwardy. It has a low, compact, round shape and contrasting foliage color, from light to dark, which makes it decorative.
• Thuja Hosery– a dwarf variety, has light green foliage, a ball-shaped crown, about 70 centimeters high. It is interesting because the color of the needles changes throughout the year from light green to bronze.

• Filiformis. This thuja is completely different in structure of the crown and branches from the previous specimens; it is more like a fountain. It harmonizes with creeping conifers and can be used as a tapeworm.
• The same fountain-shaped crown thuja folded – Vipcord. She grows very slowly, with a maximum height of 1 meter. An adult thuja is given an original standard shape.

• Thuja Sunkist has a clear conical shape and is characterized by very slow growth (up to 1.5-2 meters). The unusual color allows it to be used both in a single planting and in a composition to create a yellow spot.

• Holmstrup- an elegant columnar thuja, with dense, beautiful noble silver needles on twisted fan-shaped dense branches. It makes a majestic impression. Reaches a height of 4 meters. Used to form alleys and hedges.
• Thuja Columna- a tall, up to 10 meters in height, coniferous plant with a narrow columnar shape, with dense dark green needles. The growth per year is 15-30 centimeters. Very unpretentious to the composition of air and soil. Long-lived.

• Amber- a new variety of tall thuja, the height reaches 4 meters, it has a narrow conical crown. The value of the variety for site decoration lies in its bright yellow needles, which require a sunny location. Frost resistance is high.

Compatibility with other plants

The many types and colors of this coniferous plant make it possible to widely use thuja in landscape design. Thujas go well with creeping junipers. Ball-shaped crowns and soft needles combine beautifully with spruce trees.

Prickly and bright roses serve as decoration for delicate greenery and spiral twigs of thuja. The same requirements for soil composition with other coniferous plants make them good neighbors.

How to choose?

When choosing a variety, it is worth reading about the frost resistance of a particular species. There are special correspondence tables for this. An important factor is the growth rate and height of the plant in adulthood. For alpine hills, it is better to choose dwarf varieties with minimal annual growth, but for hedges you need large specimens with rapid shoot growth.

When choosing multi-colored options for hedges, you should focus on the same height of adult shrubs.

When purchasing seedlings from gardening farms, you need to assess the condition of the crown, its density and color. The presence of dried branches may indicate damage to the root system. Such a seedling will not restore its decorative form for a long time or may even die.

Where to plant?

To plant thuja, you need to choose a fairly sunny or semi-shaded place with no through wind. The soils should have slightly increased acidity and be quite loose.

If the site has clay soil, you need to dig a hole twice the size of the earthen ball, add drainage from pebbles or expanded clay and make a soil mixture of sand, peat and soil. This mixture must nourish the roots of the tree for many years so that it shows all its decorative potential.

Thuya is not afraid of groundwater; it has a superficial root system. But it is better to avoid wet low-lying or swampy areas.

Watering is only necessary for the first time for the seedling to take root; it should be moderate. Planting is best done in spring or summer. This way the plant can take root better and survive the winter.

Rules of care

Frost-resistant varieties are not afraid of winter cold. Young seedlings still need protection in the form of a thick layer of mulch and covering the above-ground part of the plant with agrospan. Over the years, thujas will acquire the necessary resistance to low temperatures. Heat-loving oriental or European thujas planted in pots should be stored in a cool, bright room in winter.

Coniferous trees and shrubs are in great demand in landscape gardening; their photos can increasingly be found in magazines and websites dedicated to landscape design. They are frost-resistant, decorative, hardy, easy to care for and are distinguished by a variety of crown shapes.

Gardeners love coniferous plants for their many other advantages:

• many varieties of conifers tolerate limited sunlight well and develop well in partial shade
• The well-developed root system of conifers allows them to tolerate long periods of time without watering; some plant species grow well on rocky soils. In addition, due to powerful and developed roots, they can be used to strengthen slopes

• Most conifers tolerate pruning well; they (some varieties of thuja look especially attractive in this regard) can be used to obtain a variety of shapes, which are often seen in photographs of regular English gardens. And some varieties of conifers naturally have a geometrically regular shape, so they require virtually no care

• Coniferous trees are a source of beneficial phytoncides; a walk through a garden with coniferous plantings has a beneficial effect on both the physical and psychological state of a person
• Conifers tolerate smoky urban environments well
• ripening cones will attract birds to the garden, filling it with life and movement

But the main thing that attracts conifers and shrubs, why design loves them is that with their green color they bring variety and liveliness even to a gloomy, gray and gloomy autumn-winter garden.

Coniferous plants: how to place them correctly in the garden

Conifers are universal plants; the abundance of forms and types allows them to be used in landscape compositions of different styles (you will find confirmation of this in our photos). In this case, the size of the plot will not become a problem - if in nature conifers are quite tall, then decorative varieties and species used for landscaping areas rarely exceed a height of 4 m. Design alpine slides It’s hard to imagine without low-growing conifers and shrubs (dwarf Hampi pine, Lobers spruce, Mini Pug pine, some types of thuja, coniferous shrubs).

The design of the site can give the coniferous tree the function of a color delimiter that will resist the fusion of natural shades. Thus, conifers will help to complicate the color combination of the garden, making it richer and deeper. Often low-growing varieties thuja with dark needles, they are used as a border for a club, enclosing the flowers inside in a kind of green frame that sets off the bright colors of the flowers. Photos of gravel gardens always contain conifers, and in some places the stone can be replaced by cones or small cut bark.

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Hedge

To zone a site, designers often use coniferous trees and shrubs. The result is not just beautiful barriers (in the photo they look like a monolithic wall), but at the same time practically impassable, i.e. exactly the qualities required for perimeter fencing fence. To do this, coniferous plants are planted in a checkerboard pattern, arranged in 2-3 rows. Of course, to achieve the full effect, it will take considerable time, but the result will exceed your wildest expectations.

For zoning a plot (garden), medium-sized (1-2 m high) varieties are most often used, which will not block the overall perspective. In addition, an evergreen hedge will provide an excellent backdrop for flowering colorful perennials; this technique is especially common in modern or landscape style gardens.

Advice! To create hedges, it is good to use different types of thujas - thanks to the dense crown, it will be enough to plant them in one row, saving space.

All-round view composition

Coniferous plants combine well with grasses, flowers (especially lilies) and foliage plants. Coniferous shrubs will look picturesque near ponds, where they will be accompanied by deciduous weeping plants. The intense greenery of the thuja with a bluish tint of needles with small spotted inclusions will be an excellent photon for junipers.

In order for a composition of coniferous plants to look impressive and harmonious, its design must include the following factors:

• the best background for conifers will be a regularly manicured lawn

• In order for the composition of their conifers (both trees and shrubs) to look harmonious and holistic, the place for the best view (the location of the gazebo or observation deck) should be located at a distance of no less than 2 times the length of the composition

• The most effective in landscape design is considered to be the location of coniferous species oriented to the west or east
• geometric shapes - in landscape design it is good to use the principle of contrast, for example, placing tall pyramidal conifers next to one of the low-growing spherical types of thuja. This arrangement of trees of different heights will help achieve some visual effects - against the background of low-growing mountain pines, several even medium-sized thujas will look very tall

Coniferous trees and bushes are ideal material for topiary, with which they acquire geometric and fantastic shapes

Before planting trees, you need not only to choose a tree, but also a place for it.

It would seem that what could be simpler than setting up a garden on a personal plot? Select all the necessary trees and shrubs and plant them in the available area. And, although trees are not people, they also have the ability to compete with each other, fight for moisture, land and place in the sun.

In this natural confrontation, the strongest survive, but even if they are placed incorrectly, they are unlikely to please you with their beauty.

Land planning

Proper placement of plants on a personal plot is the key to the success of the created landscape design. After all, a garden is laid out for many years, and its appearance will depend on how tall trees, fruit bushes, and flower beds are placed. It can be pleasant to you, bring joy, peace, relaxation, but it can also turn out to be a chaos of stuck seedlings, annoying and causing only trouble.

Therefore, it is very important to think through everything down to the smallest detail, take into account all the preferences of plants and place them harmoniously. There is even a separate term used to describe the cohabitation of living organisms - allelopathy. It can be considered as a form of peculiar ecological competition of plants in one biosystem. Various substances secreted by trees and shrubs are capable of either suppressing neighboring specimens or, conversely, activating their growth and vital functions.

Procedure for planning the placement of plants on the site:

• Draw up a detailed plan of the site to scale, detailing all the main and secondary buildings, paths, recreation areas, flower beds, and old trees that you plan to leave. Next, make a list of seedlings that you plan to plant.
• Assess the climatic and natural features of the site (land cover composition, humidity, wind rose). The topography of the area also plays an important role; you can try to level small lowlands or hills or preserve them and decorate them with appropriate plants. But in both cases, careful selection of trees and shrubs or the creation of additional conditions for selected exotic specimens is required.
• Conduct a clear orientation of the plantings to the cardinal points. Most green spaces love afternoon sun, but young seedlings should not be in the shade of a house, other buildings or mature trees. Also, low-growing trees and shrubs should be placed in the foreground in relation to the sun. For example, on a personal plot on the south and south-west side it is better to place an apple tree, pear, peach, cherry, apricot, spruce, etc. But rowan, linden, viburnum, currant, gooseberry, raspberry will feel good in the shade.
• Having clearly decided on the location and number of seedlings, mark them with dots on the plan. Next, use a compass to outline the boundaries of the indentation for the next crop. For example, the distance between mature trees should be 5-6 meters, so we draw a circle with a radius of 2.5-3 meters to scale. We draw the same boundary for the neighboring point (tree), making sure that they do not overlap one another. (On average, the distance between dwarf trees should be 2-3 meters, between shrubs 1-1.5 meters).
• If the goal of your efforts is not harvesting, but decorating your site, then you will also have to take into account the autumn and winter landscapes created by the trees. The shape of the trunks, the color of the bark, and the pattern of bare branches also matter and make up the winter graphics of the landscape design. You can select and design trees in such a way that they will look no less attractive in the cold season and delight you with their appearance.

Selecting trees for a personal plot

Deciduous trees

Birch

An unusually decorative and beautiful tree at any time of the year. With its white bark and lacy crown, it is perfect for a natural-style landscape. It grows quite quickly, loves light, tolerates frost well, and is absolutely undemanding to the soil. In order for the birch tree to take root well in a new place, young seedlings (no older than 7 years) are selected, since they do not tolerate transplantation well. It is best to plant in early spring before the buds begin to bloom. A well-developed root system makes an adult tree wind-resistant.

But do not forget that the birch tree is a “solitary plant” (it does not tolerate the proximity of other trees) and is a terrible water-drinker (it can extract up to 250 liters of water from the ground per day). Therefore, by placing it next to the garden bed, you will leave the latter with virtually no moisture. It is believed that birch trees have good bioenergy, purify the air, and protect households from diseases.

The linden grows quickly, tolerates pruning easily and blooms very beautifully!

The most shade-tolerant plant of all deciduous trees. Prefers moderate soils with good drainage. It grows quite quickly, tolerates haircuts well at any age, and can be shaped. Since time immemorial, hedges have been made from linden alleys, arches have been bent, “living” gazebos have been woven, and they have been trimmed in the shape of balls, pyramids, columns and other figures. The dark green saturated crown provides dense shade; during flowering it has a pleasant aroma; the flowers can be used to brew tea.

Linden trees remarkably improve the composition of the soil, since their foliage contains a large amount of microelements (calcium, potassium, nitrogen, sulfur, etc.). By decomposing and mixing with the top layer of soil, foliage improves the chemical composition of the soil, increasing its fertility. Gets along well with oak, maple, and rowan. The strong and soft energy of linden helps to calm, gives strength, and relieves ailments.

Rowan

Quite a modest, but unusually ornamental plant. It is undemanding to the soil, but does not tolerate excess moisture. Prefers sunny places, but tolerates partial shade quite well. It is better to plant rowan either in late autumn (October) or early spring before the start of the sap flow. It tolerates winters well, is wind-resistant, grows quickly in the first 5-10 years, then growth gradually slows down.

Rowan goes well with many coniferous (pine, spruce, fir), deciduous (willow, ash) and fruit trees (apple, pear). It is a sacred symbol of the Slavs, considered the patroness of women, the keeper of the hearth.

Willow

A rather unusual tree with hanging thin and flexible vines, which can serve as an excellent material for creating the most unusual plexuses. The elongated bright green leaves provide pleasant partial shade. The tree grows quickly, loves light, withstands poor soils well, but requires high air and soil humidity.

It takes root well, you can simply cut cuttings and place them in moist soil or water, and in a week or two they will already take root. They tolerate the proximity of conifers well; dwarf and weeping willows are excellent for creating rockeries. Willow is a tree of feminine beauty and strength.

Coniferous trees

Coniferous trees can be a wonderful addition and decoration to any style of landscape design. Planted on a personal plot, their “thorny” counterparts are in perfect harmony with many deciduous trees, complement architectural structures, have regular and clear forms, and their main advantage is all-season use.

Spruce should be planted in sunny places, and the soil should have good drainage.

This is a real slender evergreen long-liver with a dense cone-shaped crown. Loves sunny places, but does well in partial shade. She is not picky about soils, although she prefers loams and sandstones, the main thing is that the soil has good drainage and there is no excess moisture. Frost and wind resistant, grows slowly in the first years of life, does not like transplanting. In the air, young thin roots die after 20 minutes, so when replanting the spruce, take care to protect it from the sun and wind.

Spruce trees tolerate pruning well and can be used in compositions as tapeworms or as hedges. They are excellent neighbors with many deciduous ornamental trees, but suppress many fruit plants. The aroma of pine needles purifies the air, calms the nervous system, clears thoughts, and stimulates the cardiovascular system.

Thuja

An evergreen tree of the cypress family. Has original flat scaly shoots. Absolutely unpretentious to soils, survives frosts and short-term droughts well. It requires abundant watering only in the first months after planting. Takes root well, tolerates partial shade. It tolerates cutting well and is mainly used for hedges.

Thuja does not tolerate proximity to spruce and has heavy energy. Therefore, experts do not recommend planting it in close proximity to the house. But as a “living” fence, this is the best option.

Fir

A powerful, beautiful tree of the pine family, with a dense cone-shaped crown. The dark green or bluish needles seem to be covered with wax and shine in the sun. It is photophilous, but in the first years of life it requires partial shade, where it can then take root well. Prefers nutritious, well-moistened soil, but with good drainage. Does not tolerate pruning well; pruning of branches is allowed only in early spring before sap flow begins.

Fir is widely used to create unedged walls and alleys, reliably protects from the wind, and fits well with maples and mountain ash. The aroma of fir warms, gives self-confidence and adds vitality, repels many insects.

Fruit trees

For some period of time, fruit trees succumbed to fashion trends and they preferred to plant decorative deciduous or coniferous plants on their personal plots. But fashion is changing and new varieties of apple and pear trees, apricots and plums, cherries and cherries are entering the arena, captivating with their productivity, resistance to diseases and climatic conditions.

Apricots love the sun and prefer not windy places.

A beautiful fruit tree with a small neat rounded crown. Unusually decorative in spring during flowering. White, sometimes with a pink tint, the flowers have a pleasant scent. Fruits from late June to August depending on the variety. The fruits are golden-yellow, orange, sometimes with red barrels, flattened on the sides, and have dense, tasty pulp. Used to make dried apricots. Prefers sunny and low-wind places, is frost-resistant, is not fussy about the soil, tolerates drought well, but does not do well with excess moisture.

Apricot does not like proximity to cherries, but it works well with dogwood, apple and pear trees. The energy of apricot gives a charge of cheerfulness and love.

Cherries

A medium-sized tree with a beautiful spherical crown, slightly flattened at the top. The leaves are simple dark green. It blooms in spring, producing dark red, yellow or pale yellow-pink fruits on a long stalk from late May to July. The pulp is juicy, dense, sweet. Frost-resistant, drought-resistant, but during the period of fruit ripening it requires additional watering, and is absolutely not demanding on soil.
Favorably accepts the proximity of hawthorn, barberry, currants, does not like peach, plum, apricot, pear. Cherry cleanses space from curved energy flows.

Mulberry

An undeservedly forgotten crop, the fruits of which have a pleasant sweet and sour taste and healing qualities. The strong, lush spherical crown has a dark green color. Frost-resistant, drought-resistant, quickly adapts to any soil without losing productivity. The fruits are dark blue, almost black, sometimes white or reddish, and do not ripen all together, but gradually from early June to August.

To make harvesting easier, dwarf and weeping mulberry varieties have been bred. In landscape design, decorative varieties are mainly used, which lend themselves well to pruning and crown shaping. Considered a sacred tree in China, a table was usually placed under it where the whole family would gather, or a resting place for the elderly.

Thuja in landscape design is gaining more and more popularity every year. Increasingly, gardeners, when purchasing an ornamental plant, give preference to its various varieties, and nurseries regularly increase their assortment.

Brief information

The history of this coniferous plant from the Cypress family began on the border of Canada and the United States, where it was first noticed by local residents. Today there are 5 main subspecies. These are Western, folded, Chinese, Korean and Japanese. All these are evergreen trees or shrubs with a pleasant aroma and dense crown.

For your information! In landscaping, this plant is used both to form group compositions and in single plantings. Thuja will look equally good in large areas of parks and squares and in small gardens in the country.

Description of popular varieties

The following varieties are most popular among landscape designers:

• Reingold. Slow-growing dwarf bush with an ovoid dense crown. Like the Sunkist variety, it has a yellow-gold color. Height up to 1 m. Very appreciated among landscape designers. It can be planted both in group evergreen compositions and with deciduous plants. In both cases, Thuja Reingold will add a special charm to the garden.
• Filiformis. Multi-stemmed shrub with bright green needles, reaching 2 m in height and 1.5 m in diameter. The appearance resembles a haystack or a fountain. Thuja of the Filiformis variety in landscape design looks great paired with creeping ones, as part of small rocky, heather beds, and Japanese-style gardens. It is also used for decorating flower beds and facades.
• Amber. A pyramidal tall tree, which is known for the bright yellow color of its needles. As it gets colder, it changes its color to amber. Up to 5 m in height. When planted, it creates an indispensable bright accent for group planting or creating a hedge. Used to decorate small compositions in Japanese gardens.
• Teddy. A spherical, slightly elongated, slow-growing, low-growing bush up to 60 cm high. Similar to the Danika variety, which has a more regular spherical shape. This is an ideal variety to grow in a flowerpot or container. It is often a decoration for open verandas, garden tents, and gazebos. When planted alone, it looks great decorated with stones.
• Emerald. Tree up to 3 m in height, cone-shaped. Light green color. Hedges made from this variety look impressive. Used in group and single landings. Flowerbeds with thujas of this variety are suitable for any style of decoration of the local area.

Combination with other plants

This plant looks spectacular both alone and in pairs with other plants. Here are the plants that thuja goes with:

Roses

An excellent solution to plant thuja near roses. It does not interfere with the development of the root system of flowers. The most suitable for combination are spherical and vertically growing non-spreading varieties and rose bushes with white flowering.

Juniper

Juniper is the best answer to the question of what to plant next to thujas. A huge advantage of this combination is the green color at any time of the year. Especially in winter, this tandem will stand out as a bright spot among the white snow. It is better to give preference to compact, low-growing varieties that differ in color and shape.

Thuja in landscape design

Other plants

Fir, pine or spruce are planted as a base along with thujas.

Note! Deciduous rhododendrons, barberries, heather, boxwood, spirea, Erica, and hosta are perfect for decorating a site. These shrubs should be planted between thujas, which will decorate the lawn, create a background and highlight the beauty of evergreens.

Flowering deciduous shrubs, bird cherry and birch do not harmonize with thuja.

Helpful information

When forming a composition of thuja mix, low-growing dwarf shrubs should be in the foreground. Medium-sized and tall plants are placed closer to the center. Preference is given to slow-growing shrubs of medium height.

Thuja is undemanding to soil and care and tolerates planting well, but it is better not to disturb an adapted plant with unnecessary transplants. Therefore, when planting a garden, you should think in advance about its growing location, taking into account all the characteristics of an evergreen tree.

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