I am on my third set of emerald arborvitae flanking my home entry. I don't know what I am doing wrong but they will not thrive (to say the least, they reach death's doorstep). They start turning brown from the bottom up, lose their shape, and start shedding. I end up relocating them to a border locale with a partly shaded southern exposure in the backyard and care for them the same way and they start slowly recovering. The entry location is an eastern exposure, about 3 feet from the house, 2 1/2 feet from the porch, and clear on the other two sides. It is a center entry that screams for some type of small conifer. Can anyone tell me what i am doing wrong or give me a better alternative to plant there?
'Smaragd', actually. "Emerald" is a translation, not a cultivar. Not a small conifer, either, just slow and compact. Will probably grow nearly as tall as 'Fastigiata' (syn. 'Pyramidalis'), its predecessor on the general market. So, you might want to try something else anyway. Meanwhile: study site conditions, if they go South right after planting there but can grow elsewhere on the property there is something very unsuitable about that spot.
Funny, I have just been noticing Smaragds lately, and finally identified what they are at a local nursery today. Quite a cool plant really when grown tall and its narrowness really becomes apparent. You must have a good sized hedge of them in the yard by now! But if they won't grow in that spot, then perhaps you want yews, the upright cultivars? If light is the problem, the yews should overcome that. You might also want to check whether that spot is in a bit of a rain shadow, due to either the house or some eaves overhead. If it is a bit of a challenging spot, it might help to check your planting strategy. For example, planting in fall is probably best (at least it would be in this climate) so they can get established before trying to grow. There are also upright Ilex cultivars, or you could prune boxwood to fit the space. Just don't buy the one that smells like cat pee.