Appearance

Growth form

An evergreen conifer that forms a dense cone or column when young and opens up with age. Garden plants usually reach 18–25 ft (5.5–7.5 m) tall and 10–15 ft (3–4.5 m) wide; wild trees can grow taller.

Leaves

Tiny scale-like leaves cover flat sprays that stand on edge rather than lying flat. The foliage often turns bronze or coppery in winter.

Fruit

Small fleshy cones about 0.6–1 in (1.5–2.5 cm) long with thick scales. They go from pale green to brown and open like a little rose to release seeds in late summer and fall.

Look-alikes

American arborvitaeThuja occidentalis

Oriental thuja holds many flat sprays upright and has little horns on its cones. American arborvitae has flatter, sideways sprays and cones without those horns.

Where it lives

Typical habitats

• Yards and gardens
• Hedges and screens
• Rocky limestone slopes (native range)

Range

Native to China, Korea, and the Russian Far East. In the US it is widely planted as an ornamental and grows in USDA zones 6–9; it has also been found growing outside cultivation in a few Florida counties.

Preferred conditions

Handles drought and poor, rocky soil well. Heavy snow and ice can break its branches.

Growing it

Care

It isn't very cold-hardy for an arborvitae; in colder states such as Utah it can suffer winter burn.

Propagation

Grows readily from seed.

Name and classification

About the name

It was long called Thuja orientalis. It is now the only species in the genus Platycladus.

Varieties and forms

Compact cultivars include golden 'Aurea Nana' and 'Westmont'.

Conservation

IUCN Red List

NTNear Threatened·Could become threatened before long

Culture and stories

Culture and stories

• The genus name comes from Greek words meaning 'broad, flat shoots,' a nod to its flattened foliage sprays.
• In ancient China it was planted as a memorial tree, and its wood has long been used for building and for temple incense.