Thuja (Latin Thuja) is an evergreen coniferous tree of the Cypress family. In landscape design, it is used to decorate the exterior of estates, landscaping city streets, kindergartens and schools. Planting this decorative tree does not require special skills and knowledge. However, in order to grow a healthy and beautiful plant, you need to learn how to properly care for it.
How to and when to water
Before planting thuja in open ground, you need to decide on the place where it will grow. This should be a spacious area, well protected from drafts. There should also be enough light, as the conifer does not grow well in the shade. Light soil is suitable for planting; heavier soil will have to be additionally drained.
A few days before planting, you need to prepare the substrate and planting material. The soil mixture is prepared from peat, sand and compost in a ratio of 1: 1: 2. The main condition for choosing a seedling is its health. The plant should not be damaged by fungal diseases and pests, for example, the larva of the May beetle. On the day of planting, the seedling is removed from the container along with a lump.
Landing Rules:
- Put a layer of drainage (stones, crushed bricks, crushed stone) into the planting pit, the size of which should be 30 cm wide and 15 cm deep more than a coma with roots, and install planting material. The introduction of additional fertilizers is not required, since the necessary mineral components are already contained in the soil coma.
- Plant a seedling by carefully placing a lump in a pit.
- Fill with the remaining substrate, while making sure that the root neck is at ground level.
- Pour 15 liters of water and mulch. Materials of organic origin are suitable as mulch: peat, chips, leaves.
Thuja is planted in the spring.
After planting, the young plant needs special care, which includes primarily watering. At first, the tree is watered once a week. In this case, add up to 10 liters of water per plant.
In order to carry out competent care in the future, you need to find out:
- features of watering in the summer;
- how often to water after planting;
- moisturizing rules during growth and development;
- what watering is required for an adult plant.
Important! The distance between thujas should be at least five meters. Adult plants cannot be transplanted to a new place.
How often to water in the summer
In the summer months, young thuja is exposed to intense sun exposure, so it is in great need of frequent watering. So that the roots of the tree get enough moisture from the soil - it must be watered after one day. A sufficient amount of water in this case is at least one bucket (12 l) per plant.
It is especially useful in the hot season to irrigate the thuja crown. Sprinkling allows you to wash off the dust accumulated on the needles, refresh it and protect it from sunburn. In addition, the “shower” additionally moisturizes the air, which positively affects the quality of the needles. 
Its color becomes more juicy, saturated, and coniferous aroma is significantly enhanced. It is recommended to rain in the evening, and to water in the early morning. In the cold season, irrigation is categorically not recommended, as there is a risk of frostbite of tender needles.
To irrigate the crown, you need to prepare a film mottled with small holes. Cover the tree with a film and pour over it. You can also spray using a special hose nozzle. It is equally important after watering to loosen the earth around the plant and rid it of overgrown weeds.
Loosening makes the soil lighter, more airy, which allows moisture to penetrate deeper into the earth and saturate the roots.
Watering frequency after planting
Immediately after planting, in the spring, the thuja is watered once a week. Depending on the size of the seedling, watering is made in the amount of 10 liters of water per plant. In this case, it is important not to overdo it and not to flood the young tree.
Important! Excess and stagnation of moisture in the soil can lead to rotting of the roots and death of the tree.
Mulch will help to save water in the earth (pieces of bark, wood chips and sawdust, dry foliage). It is applied in a small layer, about 5 cm around the trunk in summer and 20 cm in late autumn to maintain heat in the winter. In the rainy season, additional watering is not required. In autumn, closer to winter, the amount and frequency of watering should be reduced to once every two weeks, while adding up to 12 liters of water. In winter, they do not water the thaw.
Video: Tui drip irrigation system
Watering during growth
During the formation of the tree requires regular and timely watering. The development and appearance of the thuja will depend on the frequency and compliance with the regime of water procedures. For example, a lack of moisture affects the needles of a plant - it becomes faded, turns yellow and begins to crumble.
Excessive moisture also affects the appearance of the tree. The crown, oversaturated with moisture, looks sluggish, the shoots begin to grow heavier and lean toward the ground, the trunk darkens, and at its base signs of decay and infection by the fungus begin to appear. It is possible to check whether a plant needs watering by clenching a ball of earth taken from its base in a fist. If the soil is crumbly and only slightly moist - this indicates that it is time to water the thawed.
Did you know? Essential oil, which is obtained from needles, is used to treat vascular and skin diseases.
The watering regimen during the development period changes as they grow older. The older the tree, the less often it is watered. However, this does not mean that watering ceases altogether. Attention and care of decorative trees is required constantly. Just the frequency and amount of fluid introduced is reduced.
Watering an adult thuja
Adult thuja is watered once every two weeks, using from 10 to 15 liters of water. In summer, additional hydration may be necessary - in the dry period, the plant is watered weekly, pouring 10-15 liters under one tree. In this case, it is advisable to loosen the soil after each watering.
Automatic watering will provide moisture under the very root of the plant.
In spring and autumn, the plant will have enough natural rainfall. It is not possible to sprinkle an adult plant, since even decorative varieties of grown thuja reach a height of 4–5 m.
Consequences of ignoring watering or improperly doing it
Non-compliance with the irrigation regime - its lack or oversupply - can lead to sad consequences. Insufficient moisture leads to drying out of the soil and inhibition of root development. Hyper-watering is no less dangerous for the health of the arborvitae and can lead to decay and death of the plant.
Check out
It is very important to observe the humidification requirements during the hot months, since in conditions of solar activity, the needles lose a large amount of moisture. The main condition for caring for a tree in the summer is regular and timely provision of a young tree with liquid.
Watering during this period should be made in the morning, as direct sunlight intensively evaporates moisture from the soil.
Also, as a result of heating and evaporation of the liquid from the surface of the needles, it can leave burns on the tender shoots, therefore it is better to irrigate the crown in the evening, at sunset.
What can be watered and what is the effect of this
To stimulate growth and development, a young tree is recommended to be fed. However, fertilizers can be applied no earlier than 2-3 years after planting. This is because the necessary nutrients are introduced into the soil with an earthen lump, in which the roots of the seedling are located.
When the thuja reaches two years of age, you can begin to feed it with special mineral additives designed to fertilize conifers. 
Kemira Universal is well suited for this. The product is calculated at 50 g per m² diluted in 10 liters of water and watered the area around the plant. Then you need to loosen. Loosening will allow the fertilizer to better absorb into the soil.
Did you know? Thuja refers to long-lived trees. Her age can reach 200 years.
Thuja western refers to hygrophilous trees. For its full development and formation, it is necessary to observe the correct watering regime. It must be timely and in sufficient quantity to satisfy the basic need of the tree for moisture.
