Do Thuja occidentalis require a dessicant for winter

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sarahn Milton, NH(Zone 5a) Sep 21, 2008

The nursery where I bought 6 Emeralds and 3 Techny stronlgy recommended spraying them with a dessicant, a kind of spray wax, to keep them from drying out during the winter. I'm in zone 5, and the soil is moist well drained to dry. They are all 3-5 feet tall. planted them last April, and they are doing well. Is this necessary?

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snapple45 Holland, OH(Zone 5b) Sep 21, 2008

I don't like the stuff much myself. ( I think you mean anti-dessicant ). These arborvitae are both hardy to zone 3 and the Techny is often planted as a windbreak to protect more sensitive plants. The Emerald will bronze in cold weather and the natural growth habit of both is to have some interior browning of needles. If they are planted in good soil with adequate moisture ( more important for the Emerald than the Techny) you shouldn't have any problems. Both these conifers get very large too, 30' for Emerald and 20' for the Techny. Eventually you would need a tanker truck of anti-dessicant to get them fully sprayed. This being their first year, maybe I would spray if they are exposed to harsh unrelenting winter winds. But eventually they'll have to be on their own.

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Resin Northumberland, United Kingdom(Zone 9a) Sep 21, 2008

Ditto to Snapple.

Resin

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sarahn Milton, NH(Zone 5a) Sep 23, 2008

Thanks, snapple and Resin. I did mean anti-dessicant! I'm not sure, but I'm not too worried either about the amout of wind as we are on a slope in a river valley surrounded by houses and mature maple and oak trees. I might be in for trouble, though, regarding height. As for all my research, I thought the height of the Emerald 8' and the Techny 12'. Uh-oh!. I know shrubs can grow differently in different locations, we'll have to see. I do want a screen, just not that much shade.

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