Today’s evergreens not only offer practical solutions to garden challenges—but they look fabulous in the landscape, too. With ...

Arborvitae plants are popular, cheap evergreen shrubs found all around Chicago. Here’s how to pick one that’s right for your yard.

Late winter or early spring is generally the best time to prune conifers (needled evergreens) such as arborvitae, but these plants do not respond well to heavy pruning at any time of the year.

Most shrubs and trees do best when planted in the fall. Spring and summer plantings usually end badly due to heat and lack of water.

I have a problem with my emerald arborvitae shrubs. Several years ago I planted six of these shrubs along my driveway. I also planted one in the back yard against the house and two others in the ...

By late July, I noticed several of the arborvitae had slight amounts of brown foliage at the tips and at random places throughout the height of the shrubs.

These dense outdoor plants—including camellias, boxwoods, and many more—are some of the best options for creating privacy in your space.

Arborvitae also pair well with tall flowering shrubs (viburnum, ninebark, tree-type hydrangeas, crape myrtles, etc.) Size-wise, it's true arborvitae will grow 1 to 2 feet per year.

The arborvitae regained their structure and were still standing tall many decades later. Deciduous (leafy) shrubs that are flattened by snow and ice are better able to rebound than evergreens.

A better approach may be to remove the existing arborvitae shrubs and replace them with a smaller conifer. There are lots of compact and dwarf conifer varieties on the market these days.