Labrador Tea vs Emerald Cedar - TreeTime.ca

Labrador Tea vs Emerald Cedar

Thuja occidentalis Smaragd

Rhododendron groenlandicum (Ledum groenlandicum)

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2026)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Emerald Cedar
Labrador Tea

Emerald Cedar makes a great addition to landscapes, and is often used to form tight hedges or privacy screens. The thick scale-like foliage adds texture and colour to yards and is commonly used to line driveways. Unlike other cedars it retains its green colour throughout the fall and winter.

It is a semi dwarf species, which generally needs little pruning, but if desired it responds well to trimming. Its attractive, columnar shape and dense foliage makes it a desired landscape feature.

The Emerald Cedar won the award of merit from the Royal Horticultural Society.

Labrador Tea is slow-growing evergreen shrub native to the boreal forests of Canada.

It thrives in wet, swampy conditions.

Labrador Tea has narrow, leathery, dark green leaves, topped by a cluster of white flowers in the spring. It is a perfect ornamental shrub for boggy, wet areas of your property.

Emerald Cedar Quick Facts

Labrador Tea Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 1a
Height: 4 m (13 ft)
Height: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: any
Growth rate: slow
Growth rate: slow
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Suckering: none
Suckering: none


Toxicity: slightly toxic if ingested
Foliage: leathery, orange undersides, evergreen
Fall colour: rust orange
Flowers: white, fragrant
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: smaragd arborvitae, thuja occidentalis emeraude