Did you know that landscaping with arborvitae will give you and your lawn a level of security that is unmatched? Arborvitae is a medium to a tall heightened tree known for having dense and thick leaves, meaning that it looks stunning and vibrant.
Having these trees on your lawn, backyard, or even around the boundaries of your house will take your home from looking good to looking great. In this article, we have collected some inspiring tips and ideas for landscaping with arborvitae.
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Tips for Landscaping With Arborvitae
1. Using It as a Backdrop for Your Plants
Arborvitae or Thuja occidentalis, plants and trees have the same monotone-colored leaves all over their branches. This means that when they reach full height, they can be used as an excellent backdrop for your shorter, more vibrant, and different-colored plants. These can be flower bushes, shrubs, or even flower plants.
If you’re thinking of what to plant in front of green giant arborvitae, then perennial plants are your best option.
These include Russian sage, common sage, and Hollyhock are all great plants that can be used here as all of them make great arborvitae companion plants. Even roses and arborvitae look great together.
These shorter plants will appear to be more vibrant and colorful, especially when placed in front of the monotone arborvitae. This will both increase the bio-diversity you have going in your yard, and it will make your yard look more stylish, elegant, and well put together.
Arborvitae can be used to blend in while making the smaller, more vibrant plants the main focal point. These trees can also take center stage by having just a few strategically placed around your yard. If placed on the corners and the parameters, they can give that feel of elegance to your space.
2. Creating a Topiary
The practice and art of creating shapes and ornamental pieces out of trees and shrubs are called topiary.
Topiaries can be made of all medium to short-sized trees and tall bushes. Green giant arborvitae plants can be made into topiaries as their size, and thick foliage will allow them to become beautiful masterpieces worthy of showing off to your friends, family, and guests.
Topiaries are what the well-shaped, beautiful ornamental-looking trees at Versailles are. In the 1600s, having topiaries at your properties or estate meant you belonged to a wealthy upper-class family that had the means and the money to afford to have such a luxury displayed in their gardens.
This holds today as well. Having topiaries in your yard is still seen as something elegant and sophisticated that only a few can afford. If you choose to create a topiary made of green arborvitae, keep an eye on them.
Sure, arborvitae is somewhat low-maintenance and easy to manage; however, that does not mean they won’t grow out of the shape you cut them in.
The beauty of topiary is that it has nice clean lines.
Thus, some level of maintenance is needed. If done right, topiaries on your lawn can give it that flare and really take your design and setting to the next level. Try it and see! Maybe your space too can look like the beautiful gardens of Versailles!
3. Playing With Different Sizes and Shapes of Arborvitae
Similar to having a bunch of well-assembled topiaries, you can also experiment with growing different sizes and shapes of arborvitae in your yard.
If you have a plain old corner in your yard, why not try filling it with different sized and shaped plants such as the arborvitae? Not only will this help you fill up space, but your yard will have a cute, dense area that is filled with plants!
Landscaping with arborvitae means letting your creative juices flourish, and experimenting with plants that have different heights, colors and textures are all integral when it comes to how you want your garden to look.
Remember, there is no right or wrong when it comes to your ideas and executions. It is truly a creative expression to want your yard to look a certain way that aligns with your taste and aesthetic.
These varieties of arborvitae are three to four feet broad and tall, as opposed to the conventional arborvitae, which are higher than it is wide. Some even go by names like “Golden Globe” to reflect their distinctive shapes. While some are more emerald-green, others are more golden.
Arborvitae comes in dwarf and tall varieties. The dwarf variety can look very cute because they look like small settees or tufts. They give a magical and whimsical feel to any yard that they grow in. If you’re aiming for a theme, then these are definitely something to not miss out on!
4. Using as Dividers
Any homeowner with a large enough room size knows how important it is to create borders and dividers to keep one space looking different from the other. The same is true for large yards that are just too big to be considered one large space.
Landscape designs of arborvitae do include using them as dividers due to their height and density. Want to create a small and cozy seating area for adults that you’d like to be separate from the yard and don’t want to go through the hassle of actually pouring in money and resources to get a concrete wall?
Arborvitae plants are your best bet. Not only do they grow fast, require less maintenance, and cover the space behind them, but they are also easier on the pocket than a concrete wall.
They’re the perfect privacy screen, without having an actual privacy screen installed. The emerald green arborvitae provide the best privacy while looking beautiful and complementing the rest of the natural landscape design of your yard.
The arborvitae is also a living wall if you think about it.
5. Using as Windbreakers
The taller variety of arborvitae makes wonderful trees that act naturally as windbreaks. We advise the arborvitae varieties known as the ‘Green Giant’ and ”American Arborvitae if you’re interested in including one of them in your garden.
Even though arborvitaes generally have rapid growth, this particular kind is the fastest. The Giant variety will grow three feet every year on average.
They often reach heights of 30 to 40 feet and widths of 15 to 20 feet. When fully grown, some can even reach 50 or 60 feet. The ideal soils for growth are sandy, loamy, or clay.
Upon reaching this height, they become powerful windbreakers and work to keep your outdoor furniture safe. Here, landscaping plans and ideas pay off because if strategically placed, your arborvitae trees can prevent serious damage from taking place in your yard.
6. Framing Any Entryway
Arborvitae has many purposes than only providing privacy. It also offers a lovely way to welcome guests inside.
An entranceway can be perfectly surrounded by arborvitae to make it look beautiful and inviting. Use many of these trees to line the path leading to your house. Alternately, place one on either side of the entryway. Or try both.
There is no limit as to what you can creatively achieve with these trees. Arborvitae can and should be used in landscaping in countless ways.
Another tip here is if you want different-sized arborvitae lining up on your driveway, place them in pots. The less spread-out their roots are, the more likely they will be shorter in size.
This can make your entryway look very cute and unique. It is a sure way to have more guests or anyone over who may just be curious about the shape and size of your lovely arborvitae. What is more, is that these trees will come in use, especially during the holiday season when you’re decorating the exterior parts of your house.
Placing strings of lights over these different-sized trees will make your yard look even more amazing, especially at night. Truly, the ideas are endless when it comes to framing the entryway of your house with arborvitae.
7. Hiding Any Unsightly Features
We’ve all been there. We all have one or two features in our yards that we’re not particularly proud of. This can be any worn-out, sun-bleached wooden fence that surrounds your vegetable garden.
It can even be the chipping brick wall that you may host barbeques against. Whatever it is, you can rest assured arborvitae will help you cover this up.
Owing to their long sizes and dense foliage, arborvitae are most commonly used by many people and homeowners to hide anything they may not be proud of. As they say, out of sight, out of mind.
Conclusion
Landscaping with arborvitae can lead to you having one of the best projects you’ve done in a while.
While you’re finding inspiration for landscape ideas, or maybe you just want a good project that requires some serious elbow grease, we hope you found something in our list of ideas worth your while.
If nothing else, we hope you take precautions and get arborvitae plants just to get extra protection from the wind.
