You can start Thuja from seed, but they won't be 'green Giant', they will just be generic arbs.

Would be expected to show a range of characters of the parent species, a resulting hedge might not be uniform. Would also be expected to need a cold treatment before being able to germinate, you should be able to find valid information on growing Thuja species from seed on the web. Otherwise maybe at a college library. You will have to decide which source seems to be giving you the straight dope and proceed from there. Where I live I think a typical routine in a commercial setting would be to plant the fresh seeds when mature in fall in a cold greenhouse and move on the resulting seedlings the following year. An important point in your case would be what harvest the seeds you were sent date from, it seems kind of early for this year's crop to have been ready. In which case if they have been stored warm since last fall viability may have fallen markedly.

buy one.. and propagate some thru rooting ...

i filled a milk jug.. and got about 12 of 25 to root .. in perlite.. with rooting hormone.. on bottom heat .. in winter ... in a gallon baggie ... under lights ... there.. the whole formula.. good luck .... lol

thuja are one of the few CONIFERS.... [there is such a forum].. that root rather freely ...

check Dirrs manual propagation of woody plants for more info ...

ken

They root so easy from cuttings, why bother to go the seed route?
Mike

I live in a small town and we didn't get any green giants this year.

I tried to order some online but I live in Canada and all the sites are American so they can't ship them to me....

Seeds were really my last resort for this year.

Can you give us a hint to where in Canada you live? Might help to find you a source of Green Giant for next year.

When you do get your hands on one, propagating from cuttings is the way to go. From seed, you won't get the true Green Giant and you're putting yourself at a ~3 year disadvantage over cuttings.

It's already been said, but I will try to make it clearer...You cannot propagate 'Green Giant's from seed.

If the plant isn't on the market in Canada then you will just have to use something else - including perhaps seedlings from your seed purchase, if you get any to come up. There is probably no particular reason why you need 'Green Giant' specifically - and if you do not want a "Giant" it might actually not be suitable anyway.

I grew some generic thuja plicatas, not green giants. I planted them in a flat in the porch, and the porch slightly freezes over winter. Seedlings appeared for 3 years and I just potted them on or planted them outside as each one appeared large enough. Perhaps green giants are the same that way???

Hi Mrs Boutin,
Get your small GG's from this link for @ US$4.95.
They will ship to Canada but there is an added expense for that.

Here is a link that might be useful: US source Green Giants

I love Thuja Green Giant! I live in Nairobi Kenya, Africa. How do i get some? Please help

Embo, I'm not sure Thuja requires any stratification or other treatment in order to initiate germination. To wit: I have two large T. occidentalis at my home, both voluminous seed producers. And yearly, there are numerous seedlings coming up all over the yard. They especially like a flat rock/gravel screenings pathway, where they come up in the between-the-rocks screenings with abandon.

Now it is possible that I see all the new seeds, then just a bit later, lots of new seedlings, and that the latter are coming from the previous year's seeds, but it doesn't seem so. IOW's we get a ton of cones, two tons of seeds (no logical error there, lol) and then seedlings coming up all over. Hmmm? Might have to look it up later if I have time. Seems to me, they are ready to go right off the tree.

@ Ms Boutin: The primary cost of producing young plants is "bench space". that is, at the earliest stages, these plants may be raised on either an indoor (greenhouse) or outdoor production facility. During the whole time this development is taking place, no other crop can be using that space. I think if you had a clue as to all the inputs involved in producing the myriad plants that growers do produce for our landscapes, that $30 or whatever would not seem "crazy" at all. In fact, most plants are really bargains in today's marketplace.

But these are indeed easy plants to produce. I regularly harvest lots of these little seedlings for outplanting at one of my son's places. To say it works well would be an understatement.

+om

Cold stratification of these seeds occurs naturally in the wild just by virtue of them undergoing a cold winter period before germination. According to the National Forest Service: "As a
rule the seeds have only slight internal dormancy. Under forest conditions
dormancy is broken while the seeds lie on the ground during the first
winter; thus fall sowing is generally recommended".

In the case I referred to, it really does appear to be the case that no stratification, whether by ma nature or by myself, is required for T. occidentalis seeds to sprout. Seed is lying all over my front porch every year, and it is these seeds which sprout everywhere. I think the literature you sited Gal tends to support this, in referring to only "slight internal dormancy". I would suggest it is very slight indeed...trailing off to zero.

+oM

where emerald green arborvitae grows in Kenya..do they grow in Nairobi??

If Yes where can I get the seedlings for planting and at what cost.

Look for local sources of trees and what kinds are being used - unless it sits near the top of a high volcano seems highly doubtful that any Thuja would grow in Nairobi. Maybe Platycladus and certain more or less tropical juniper species, climate permitting.