a 5 foot tall thuja is NOT a small one.. but that doesnt matter ...

are these 3 downhill??? i am wondering about drainage and too much water.. as in.. as you water some uphill the ones below are getting too much

how do you water.. how do you know when they need more????

and how did you amend the soil .... again.. if you added a peat product.. something to increase water retention.. and you are not getting proper drainage.. you have created a swamp .. though many trees can acclimate to such .. a transplant can not live in a a swamp ...

a pic sure might help ...

other than that.. i usually write it off to indian burial ground.. when i get stumped..

that you succeeded with the others.. leads me to believe that they are getting enough water to flourish.. so that would lead to the suggestion that somehow these 3 might be getting too much????

also.. any indication of the neighbor wanting to kill them.. just to spite you????

ken

Are we talking Thuja occidentalis, like arborvitaes? IME, the primary failure for plantings of these is lack of adequate water while they are getting established. These are also commonly known as 'swamp cedars', indicating their natural preference for growing in moisture-laden, often even boggy or swampy conditions. Difficult to give these guys too much water when they are just getting started :-) And sandy, rocky soil may be simply drying out too much/too fast to keep everyone happy. I'd assume CO to be rather dry and hot in late summer so that would be my first guess.....:-)

As to why the three trees continue to decline while the other seem to thrive, it is quite possible that drainage conditions are different in the two areas, even if planted quite closely. The soil surrounding the healthy trees may be more moisture retentive than elsewhere. To be certain, it would help if you can compare the soil in the two areas and to know if you amended before planting or not or if the trees were mulched.

it is fairly level where thujas are planted, but judging from the position of storm inlets on the street they are the three that are highest on the slope. i have drip irrigation. the way i judge on water is i stick my finger into the soil by the tree trunk. the way i amended soil is i used half native soil from the hole and half compost when planting as suggested on the flyer that came with the tree.

it is arborvitae emerald green. the soil condition is same (rocky) at each tree as i remember digging the holes and cursing like crazy. maybe more rocky at these last ones, hard to say. i will try to post some images. oh and the trees are 3' tall not 5'. i have about 1 or 2" layer of mulch on the top

In Colo I hope the OP isn't watering too much. $50 in water to kill some plants?

Nonetheless, Colo is a big, varied place and many areas here aren't for that plant, even though HD offers it as a low-cost consumer good. If not in a protected spot that gets plenty of water, they simply will not flourish and may very well die. I watched the same thing across the street from us - the poor lady keeps losing hers out in the open but closer to the house they at least aren't dying.

Dan

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this was when i planted them at the very beginning

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later on through the summer

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this one is most current, from about month ago after i replanted them second time. last three to the left. dont have closeup with me right now of how they look now but will post tomorrow. at least it gives the idea of how they are positioned. do you guys see any issues?

the heck with the bushes.. i want to see more of the deck and the post modern house ... lol .. are you modifying a house like those across the street into something new????

cant see much from that distance...

so the 3 closest to the driveway die .. yes??? ... are they being fried by reflected sun?? ... whats the exposure???

what is the winter sun exposure???

engineered irrigation.. or bigboxstore weeper hose ???

this is a stumper... looks like nice soil ...

ken

lol, the house is new. i mean was, two years ago. built it with my wife and contractors help. have tons of images if you are interested.
sun exposure is basically all day for last couple thujas. all the images you are looking at are facing east. so winter sun about same until it gets too low.
i have there 1/2" hose with drip emiters hideden in mulch.

sun exposure is basically all day for last couple thujas.

===>>> are you an engineer.. man alive...

the last couple that keep failing.. or the last couple with which we have no issue????

we are getting somewhere.. i just have no clue where....

if the failing ones are baking in the sun all day long.. and all winter.. with exposure to reflected sun on the driveway.. those 3 must be drying faster than the rest... ergo ipso facto.. those 3 MIGHT need more water ...

insert finger.. water when dry for 2 years ...

now .. why would invest in all that cool house .. and then go to the bigboxstore to buy arbs .... its akin to putting plastic flowers in the sistine chapel .... if they fail again.. lets talk about some plants that will echo the house design ....

ken

if they fail again.. lets talk about some plants that will echo the house design

ken, what would you suggest?

the big box store decision was budget driven same as decision for me and my wife basically building the house ourselves. i cant afford to pay $50 at echters for very same tree i get for $7 at hd.

I can think of two possibilities. New construction two years ago in Colorado that is not know for high precipitation, and I assume alkaline soil, as the people out west talk so much about. This leaves me to wonder if there is concrete waste (as there is in most new construction) in that area near the driveway. IF so, then that could make the soil even more alkaline and perhaps enough to take a toll on the plants so that when anything else happens they begin to fail. Winter could be that anything else, or salt from the road or drive, or it just may be salt period. We had the concrete problem around our house, but we have acid soil and high precipitation, so has not given us allot of problems, but that may not be the case everywhere.

Arktrees

OK, I was in a BIG hurry before as I had to leave. So will repost and correct a bit, and add another possibility. I can think of a couple possibilities. New construction two years ago in Colorado that is not know for high precipitation, and I assume alkaline soil, as the people from the west talk about so often. This leads me to wonder if there is concrete waste (as there is in most new construction) which is very alkaline in that area near the driveway. IF so, then that could make the soil even more alkaline, and perhaps enough to take a toll on the plants so that when anything else happens they begin to fail. Winter could be that anything else, or salt from the road and/or drive, or it just may be salt period. We had the concrete problem around our house, but we have acid soil and high precipitation, so has not given us allot of problems, but that may not be the case everywhere. Also a neighbor had a spot where his grass would not grow PERIOD. It had obviously had something poured or leaked onto it at one time, as it would a defined round area about 24" across. Could have been brake/transmission/power steering/hydrolic fluid, or something else. Ultimately had to dig it out and refill with soil. So I have to wonder if something is chemically contaminating the soil as well. Could have been accidental, or someone being lazy.

I would definitely check the soil pH to see if it varies, after that you might try replacing the soil in that area if you can't get anything to grow there. Any other ideals?

Arktrees

Arktrees

thanks ark
i had replaced soil at that location. well at least part of it. last time i replanted i dug basically a trench that would accommodate all 3 trees and and about 2' wide, replaced with compost and new soil and half of native soil. no concrete remnants or rubble in the soil, just big cobblestones. it could be that something was spilled there before we even bought the land or even during construction.
another think that comes to my mind is the winds that we are having. could winds cause them to die?

think of frozen chicken left in the freezer too long..

its called freezer burn.. here it is called dessication ....

and that can be increased by winter sun.. hitting the pavement.. and warming one side of the plant.. then the wind coming along and freeze drying it ...

same idea in summer.. the reflected heat off the driveway.. bakes the plants near it.. and being that they transpire.. or sweat ... they give off more moisture than they can pump.. otherwise known as dessication ... once established.. they can fend for themselves ... but its the transplants that are.. as you know.. problematic .... you may need to provide a screen of some kind for the first year ....

it sure wont help if the driveway is blacktop.. as black retains more heat ... cook an egg on it in august ... and almost so on sunny days in february ....

i cant recommend anything specific as CO seems so bizarre to me... its z5 ... which i am very familiar with.. but those darn mountains complicate it all too much.. i figured the landscape budget is in the future ... and i agree you need to block the view across the road.. you have a good start .... it seems that JMaples would fit the theme.. but again.. will they work for you.. no clue ...

can we see the front of the house?????

ken

ken
here you go
http://aurhaus.blogspot.com/2000/05/exterior.html

Another thought occurred to me. Do you use a snow blower for the drive? If loads of snow are blown onto these new transplants, then it would seem highly possible that the weight of the snow, and impact could be doing enough damage to kill them.

Arktrees

very cool house.. thx for the link ...

ken