Japanese Arborvitae

Thuja standishii

Digital photograph of a Japanese Arborvitae taken at Woodstock Estate, Inistioge, County Kilkenny

Thuja standishii

Digital photograph of a Japanese Arborvitae taken at Woodstock Estate, Inistioge, County Kilkenny

Common Name: Japanese arborvitae

Description: This tree can grow up to 18m in height and is often multi-stemmed. The bark is rich brown and fibrous. The crown is often broadly pyramidal in shape but can be irregular. The leaves are a dark green, the cones are small and round, the seeds 5-6mm long and winged.

Origin: This species occurs in Japan in mountainous areas of Honshu and Shikoku in cool temperate forests. This is one of the 'Five Sacred Trees of Kiso' often used for Shinto Temple construction.

It is well suited to Irish conditions but not common in cultivation. Introduced in 1860 by William Fortune through seed supplied to Standish Nurseries, thus the name.

The specimen in Woodstock is multi-stemmed, the tallest of the five stems is 19.2m in height.