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| Approx. 3 years ago I started a project in my back yard. The plan was to create a border of Green Giant arborvitaes to cover the old decaying fence, and also to block out the neighbors to the back that have a direct shot of my entire yard due to the grade of the yard making my house higher then theirs. I was able to get half of it done, and, well, life happened and the rest was left a construction site. I'm planning an entire lawn renovation and completing of the river rock beds for the remainder of the border. My problem...
As you can see in my pictures, the green giants have an odd grow pattern. In the higher grade, they have grown 2-3x as much as the lower graded area (started at 18-24in. planted 5' on center). There were about 5 across that back section that completely died out. ? ..The only reason I can think of is the spring wetness. That back area stays fairly damp/wet when we have a good amount of snow in winter (once it thaws and melts). Through the summer the yard is pretty dry. Questions;
Thanks in advance. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by Ibanez540r none (My Page) on Tue, Aug 14, 12 at 19:30
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- Posted by Ibanez540r none (My Page) on Tue, Aug 14, 12 at 19:31
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- Posted by Ibanez540r none (My Page) on Tue, Aug 14, 12 at 19:32
| The back I'm trying to cover and where the others completely died |
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- Posted by wisconsitom 4/5 WI (My Page) on Tue, Aug 14, 12 at 21:33
| Good job showing us the situation, Ib. That's odd that a moisture-tolerant species occasionally behaves that way, but it does. Here I'm talking about Thuja generally, not GGs in particular. Still, I can't think of any other explanation. Something unlikely, such as a pest-control chemical draining into that area? There's nothing in your narrative to make me think such a thing likely. I do think that once established, GGs would in fact tolerate the moister conditions in that back end, so maybe a gradually rising, raised bed could get you over that hump-and still allow for the single-species effect. I can't think of anything off the top of my head that would both meet your design requirements and be more moisture-tolerant than something from the genus Thuja. Maybe someone else will think of something I'm missing at the moment. +oM |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 9:02
| no one said.. every tree of a type.. will grow precisely the same in a VERY SHORT.. in terms of tree life potential ... period of time ... the first batch look fine to me.. all look healthy and green.. and vigorous.. what more do you want ... and no.. fertilizing them wont help ... once you get the lawn in shape. they will get what they need from the lawn ... WAG ... some got 'established' a season faster.. and have simply outgrown the others.. ignore them ... as to the low spot ... do you have that famous.. BAD OHIO CLAY ??? if so.. refer to the link.. especially about.. planting in clay ... good luck ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: link
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- Posted by Ibanez540r none (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 9:19
| Ken - I agree all of the ones you are seeing are doing well. But you may have missed that along the back fence line was about 5 or 6 planted at the same time that are completely dead. (from right to left in the pic). That corner one is the only to survive along the back, although nearly the same size as it was at planting. Yes typical Ohio clay. |
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- Posted by strobiculate none (My Page) on Wed, Aug 15, 12 at 9:50
| One of the problems associated with arbs in general is root rot...so yeah, i'd completely buy a spring wetness cause. Extra moisture can also result in stunted growth. People need to learn about soils in general. Clay soil is almost never at fault, but people who don't learn how to deal with it. Given a choice, take a clay soil every time. It's chemically active, nutrient rich, water retentive. |
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- Posted by Ibanez540r none (My Page) on Thu, Aug 16, 12 at 6:46
| Figured... I'll attempt a mounded planting next time around... Does anyone know somewhere online that sells small (24in-36") green giants for a good price? |
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Thu, Aug 16, 12 at 8:14
| botanyshop.com.. is where i got mine.. i differentiated between the fence line that thrives.. and that which didnt and asked you if you had that FAMOUS OH CLAY .... and offered you a link for such ... did you miss all that.. or did i miss something else ??? if you use the search function here in GW.. you might find a couple thousand posts on GG's?? ken |
Here is a link that might be useful: see mine here
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- Posted by wisconsitom 4/5 WI (My Page) on Thu, Aug 16, 12 at 18:29
| Just to provide balance, and admittedly, this is in regards to a different though similar species-Thuja occidentalis-we have something up here called "cedar swamps". Extremely common forest type actually, where the hand of man has not been too aggressive. So this species clearly has tolerance to both high water tables and clay soil. But it's one of those odd conundrums of gardening-you take a plant which "should" work in a given location, and it doesn't. I do believe that if the GGs can get established, they'll handle most anything. +oM |
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