Emerald Green Arborvitae

Choose Emerald Green Arborvitae if you want a tight, formal evergreen screen in a narrow bed. The main tradeoff: it is slower and more deer-vulnerable than larger arborvitae, so it is not our first pick for fast privacy or heavy deer areas.

Buy This If

• You want a tight evergreen hedge.
• You can wait for coverage.
• You prefer a neat, upright shape.
• Your screening line runs through damp ground.

Skip This If

• Deer browse your yard often.
• You need fast height.
• The soil stays dry.

PGNE Report Card

Our Experience

At PGNE, we'd typically recommend Emerald Green Arborvitae for homeowners who want a neat evergreen wall and are willing to water properly while it establishes. For deer-heavy sites, we would usually point you elsewhere. Where it quietly beats the competition is the wet back corner of a lot: spruce and most junipers sulk or rot in that ground, and arborvitae does not.

Plant Facts

Customers Usually Ask

Will it make a privacy hedge?

Yes, if planted as a row and given time to fill in.

Will it handle a wet spot in the yard?

Better than most evergreens. Northern white cedar is rated FACW — in the wild it dominates cedar swamps. It handles a high water table and seasonally soggy ground where spruce and juniper would decline. What it will not take is stagnant water sitting in compacted clay with no movement, and it is genuinely sensitive to drought, so do not treat it as a tough-and-dry plant.

Can I use it in a shoreland buffer planting?

Yes, and it is one of the few evergreens that gives you screening and buffer function at once. Note that some permitted plans call for straight species rather than named selections like 'Smaragd' — check your plan set.

Does it need shearing?

Usually no, unless you want a clipped, formal hedge.

Is it safe from deer?

No; deer can browse it, especially in winter.