We have really enjoyed the native arborvitae, Thuja occidentalis ‘Congabe’, marketed under the name Fire Chief. This juvenile foliage selection from the late Maryland nurseryman, Joe Cesarini, is a stunning plant year round. It was originally discovered as a compact branch mutation on Thuja ‘Rheingold’, which we stopped growing years ago, due to its tendancy to splay open. Thankfully, the sport has not shown those tendancies.
Our 8 year old specimen is now 6′ tall x 12′ wide, despite most catalogs and websites giving a mature size as 4′ tall x 4′ wide. As you can see by the current photo below, the color is great even in late August, but it intensifies even more as the temperature cool in fall and winter. Thuja occidentalis is quite easy to grow in a range of soils from slightly moist to quite dry. The patent on this expires on May 9, 2027, so we expect more people to start propagating it after that date. Hardiness is Zone 2a-9a.
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