Plant of the Day: Thuja

DESCRIPTION: These evergreen trees are found wild in North America, Korea, Japan and China. They are very pretty trees and are hardy in most parts of North America where the soil is suitable and atmospheric conditions are fairly clean. The leaves of this tree, also known as Arborvitae, Northern White Cedar, and Swamp Cedar, are scale-like and overlap each other tightly against the twig. They are yellowish-green, one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch long and ovate with a pointed or blunt tip. The branchlets spread out in fan-shaped sprays. The small cone is about ½-inch long and matures during the first fall but remains on the tree throughout the winter. The bark of the trunks is thin and ashy to light reddish-brown. It is shed in long, narrow, shredded strips. When bruised, the branches of some kinds, notably T. plicata and T. occidentalis, give off a scent that resembles a mixture of Tansy and Turpentine. The wood of these trees is used for construction, cabinet work and cooperage. It is preferred when great durability is required to endure exposure to all kinds of weather. This wood is very resistant to decay. Some Thujas form good hedge plants and screens.

VARIETIES: T. occidentalis (American Arborvitae) & var. w/ golden leaves - aurea, Douglasii aurea, lutea, lutescens, semperaurea, Vervaeneana, Buchananii, compacta, conica, fastigata, filicoides, Riversii, robusta, Rosenthalii & viridis. Dwarf var. - Boothii, dumosa, globosa, Hoveyi, nana, pumila, pygmaea, recurva nana, umbraculifera, filiformis, Ohlendorfii, pendula, Ellwangeriana, ericoides.

T. orientalis (Oriental Arborvitae) & var. aurea, semperaurescens, bonita, elegantissima, Hillieri, minima glauca, Rosedalis, flagelliformis, meldensis & stricta.

T. plicata (Giant Arborvitae) & var. atrovirens, aurea or zebrina, fastigiata, Hillieri, pendula.

T. Standishii (Japanese Arborvitae).

T. koraiensis.

Thuja ( /ˈθuːdʒə/ or /ˈθjuːdʒə/) is a genus of coniferous trees in the Cupressaceae (cypress family). There are five species in the genus, two native to North America and three native to eastern Asia. The genus is monophyletic and sister to Thujopsis.

They are commonly known as arborvitaes (from Latin for tree of life) or thujas; several species are widely known as cedar but because they are not true cedars (Cedrus) it has been recommended to call them redcedars or whitecedars.

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Plantae

Division: Pinophyta

Class: Pinopsida

Order: Pinales

Family: Cupressaceae

Subfamily: Cupressoideae

Genus: Thuja

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{[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuja]}