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Arborvitae

Thuja occidentalis
Also known as: Eastern White Cedar

Arborvitae is a vegetable in the Cupressaceae family. It grows best in full sun to part shade with medium moisture, and is listed for USDA zones 3-8.

Varieties

1 · sorted by days to maturity
  • Arborvitae

    PROPAGATION CATEGORY: Evergreen conifer (cuttings) (not in original seed catalog). Use: Fast evergreen privacy screen.

    Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) is a hardy evergreen conifer widely planted as a fast privacy hedge or screen, with soft scale-like foliage and a naturally narrow, dense habit.

    Growing notes: Botanical name: Thuja occidentalis|Hardiness zones: 3-8|Propagation: cutting|Light: Full sun to part shade|Water: Medium|Mature size: 10-40 feet

Family
Cupressaceae
Category
Vegetable
Form
Shrub
Lifecycle
perennial
Zone
3-8
Height
10–40 ft
Spread
3–15 ft
Sun
Full sun to part shade
Water
Medium

Plan your arborvitae planting

Add arborvitae to a free GardenDraft plan and get sow, transplant, and harvest dates computed for your ZIP code — with a drag-and-drop bed layout and reminders when it’s time to plant.

Start your free plan →

At a glance

Frost tolerance
Hardy · to ~-40°F
Lowest temperature the foliage usually survives

Storing & preserving

Most keep best refrigerated; storage crops prefer a cool, dry spot.

  • Freeze: Blanch briefly, cool, then freeze — keeps color and texture.
  • Can: Pressure-can low-acid vegetables; water-bath only pickled/acidified ones.

General home-preservation guidance — for tested processing times and safety, follow the National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Growing timeline

Propagation
Cutting
Schedule anchor
Last Frost

Care & troubleshooting

No curated care & troubleshooting advice for arborvitae yet. Our extension-sourced library currently focuses on common edible crops; we're expanding it over time.