Plant Library

Other Names:  Eastern White Cedar

Description:

A distinctive little evergreen, featuring showy rich green foliage all season, forms a dense rounded ball shape without pruning; excellent for use in smaller home gardens and landscapes; best with some sun, protect from drying winds

Ornamental Features

Tom Thumb Arborvitae is a dwarf conifer which is primarily valued in the landscape or garden for its ornamental globe-shaped form. It has attractive dark green evergreen foliage which emerges light green in spring. The scale-like sprays of foliage are highly ornamental and remain dark green throughout the winter.

Landscape Attributes

Tom Thumb Arborvitae is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub. When pruning is necessary, it is recommended to only trim back the new growth of the current season, other than to remove any dieback. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Tom Thumb Arborvitae is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Tom Thumb Arborvitae will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selection of a native North American species.