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Thuja Emerald Green Spring Planting: Root Ball Handling and Watering

Four Thuja 'Emerald Green' planted May in Carolinas. All turning brown. Service says root ball not broken up, spring planting wrong (only fall). Owner asks truth.

Proper Planting (Any Season)

Hole 2x root ball, same depth.
Remove burlap/wire completely.
Root ball level with ground.
Backfill topsoil. Mulch 3" organic.

Root Ball: Don't "Break," Just Unwrap

Circling roots from left-on burlap cause decline. Removing wrap lets roots spread. "Breaking" damages roots.

Spring Planting OK With Water

Evergreens: plant up to 4 weeks after deciduous leaf-out IF watered adequately.

Water Key

1" weekly (pan method).
New plants: 1" every 3 days for 6 weeks, then weekly.

Brown likely from insufficient water, not timing or root ball "breaking."

Trees: Arborvitae Hedge with Gaping Holes: Photo Needed; Redbud, Rose of Sharon, and Emerald Green Arborvitae Care; Thuja Green Giant vs. Giant Arborvitae: Same Species, Different Names; Newly Planted Green Giant Arborvitae Leaning on a Slope: Stake or Wait?; Transplanting Large Thuja (Arborvitae): Pro Equipment Needed; Fruitless Mulberry Planted in Summer Heat: Water, Don't Fertilize; Reviving a Newly Planted Crape Myrtle with Yellowing Leaves; Fall-Planted Blue Spruce: Winter Survival Assessment; Emerald Cedar Hedge Transplant Shock: Patience and Mulch; Thuja occidentalis 'Emerald': American Arborvitae for Year-Round Green Privacy Hedges

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