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Going to the site in early spring, the summer resident expects to see signs of nature awakening and fresh needles of evergreen crops, but sometimes disappointment awaits him. Why did the thuja turn yellow after winter, what to do in such a situation? How to return the plant beauty?
Needles can change their color for many reasons. Therefore, during the inspection of the thuja, it is necessary to pay attention not only to the unnatural color, but also to the condition of the conifer.
If the needles are alive, but have changed their color to golden or bronze, or yellowing has affected only a small part of the branches inside the crown, it is possible that the thuja will recover without human intervention. And the reason for yellowing - the natural processes of renewal of needles and changes in its color when the seasons change. But what to do in the spring, if the thuja has turned yellow, its shoots have a depressed appearance, and the needles have lost elasticity, become fragile, dry?
Mass browning, yellowing and dying off of greenery on large areas is an occasion to sound the alarm and take serious measures to save the plant.
Natural causes of thuja's yellowing.
Evergreen is called not because of the endless life of their greenery, but because of its hardly noticeable turnover. The time allotted to the needles depends on the species and variety of the plant and is measured in 3–6 years. Then the needles lose their strength, elasticity and color, and then they fall off, giving the place to a new one.
In this case, the yellowing of the thuja goes from the trunk and skeletal branches to the outer part of the crown, it is barely noticeable and is never massive.
Many species and varieties of thuja for the winter, while not losing their needles, change their color to golden, reddish-copper, bronze, and brown. The only exception is the Smaragd thuja, which, even in the most severe climatic conditions, remains emerald green.
If the thuja has yellowed for natural reasons, no special measures are taken. With the advent of heat, the plant will wake up and return itself to an attractive appearance, and light sanitary pruning and nitrogen fertilizer will help it.
Why thuja has turned yellow after winter: care errors
The most common cause of yellowness and deadening of needles in the spring is a sunburn that is not dangerous for a limited number of species. To protect the plant, to complete thawing of the crown loosely, leaving the access of air, cover non-woven material.
In regions with severe, especially snowless winters, and also a lingering spring, accompanied by thaws and sharp frosts, the thuja need additional protection for this time, which will save not only from the needles that worsen the decorativeness of the needles, but also from frost, affecting the bark and wood of the trunkskeletal branches.
What should I do if the thuja has turned yellow after winter and has visibly dried out even with proper shelter?
Experienced gardeners consider the lack of autumn-spring watering a common cause of color change in needles.
Left without moisture in the fall, the conifer went poorly prepared for the winter, and with the advent of heat it is difficult for him to immediately grow. It is possible to return tue beauty:
- by adjusting the irrigation regime, in parallel watching, so as not to overflow the evergreen culture;
- pruning damaged branches;
- feed the shrub with a spring mixture of fertilizers for conifers.
An additional portion of nitrogen fertilizer and shearing will help plants that are planted as a living wall or curb along the route, footpath or on the territory where pets walk. Although Tui are very resistant, and they may suffer from exposure:
- reagents designed to accelerate the melting of snow and ice;
- from intensive exhaust of cars and aggressive compounds falling into the soil with melt water and heavy metal salts;
- from systematic feces and marks of cats and dogs.
Care errors can be corrected, but what if the thuja turned yellow soon after planting?
What to do when the thuja turned yellow after planting
The shrubs planted in the fall can already become unsightly brown and yellow spots in the first spring. What happens to the plant, and how to help it?
The most likely cause of yellowing of the thuja in the first year of life in the open field is considered to be an improperly planted planting.
Novice gardeners do not take into account that conifers are very negative:
- to the proximity of groundwater, the stagnation of which causes rotting of the root system, yellow needles and drying out of the branches;
- to deepen or expose the root collar, which leads to inhibition of growth, the risk of stem rot at the base of the stem;
- to too frequent planting of single plants, which provokes the contact of the branches, the violation of their growth, drying out and the falling off of the needles;
- to improperly matched, too dense, poor or saturated water.
Unfortunately, if these mistakes are made, it is better to transplant, providing the plant with everything necessary for growth, including drainage, a distance not less than a meter from the nearest neighbors and the soil consisting of turfy land with the addition of sand and lowland peat.
Yellowing of thuja from pests and diseases
Coniferous crops, like other garden plants, are susceptible to bacterial and fungal diseases. Their traces can be seen in the summer and spring.
Thuja turned yellow after winter, what to do, and how to determine the enemy that you have to fight?
After melting snow, especially on young shrubs, it is possible to detect the symptoms of reproduction of harmful fungi that parasitize not only on the surface, but also inside the tissues. Spreading in a thick crown, they cause a change in the color of the needles, drying out at first thin, and then main shoots. In addition to microscopic fungi, tinder fungi and all kinds of rot cause damage to plants.
As a prevention of wilting and necrosis, thuja in the spring and in the winter are sprayed with Bordeaux liquid or other copper-containing fungicides. In the risk zone, the treatment is repeated in summer.
Spraying is carried out after sanitary pruning and sanitation of all damages left in winter:
- cracks on the bark;
- frost;
- saw cuts large branches.
If there are dead, old or badly affected plants or fungi at the site, they are removed and the stumps are uprooted and burned.
Along with pathogens, dangerous sucking insects can settle on thuja, causing the needles to turn yellow and separate parts of the plant to die. Identify enemies will help careful study of the crown and infected areas. And to get rid of them will help systemic insecticides, which are used both for medicinal purposes and for prevention.
