The amazing juniper is a beautiful tree with many beneficial properties. Types and varieties of juniper Juniper pfitzeriana glauca description

Description

Evergreen wide-spreading shrub. The branches are located at an angle. The needles are needle-shaped and scaly, dove-blue on sunny place to gray-green in partial shade, with a slight purple tinge in winter. The growth rate is moderate, reaches a height of 2-3 m, a width of 3-4 m. It is undemanding to soils, grows on all types of soils, from dry to wet, acidic and alkaline. A very frost-resistant and drought-resistant variety, resistant to urban climate and harmful emissions, easy to cut. Recommended for single and group plantings against a lawn, rock gardens, rocky areas, landscaping balconies and roofs, growing in containers, for parks and large gardens.

Planting Juniper medium "Pfitzeriana Glauca"

Wintering Juniper medium "Pfitzeriana Glauca"

Care Juniper medium "Pfitzeriana Glauca"

Pruning Juniper medium "Pfitzeriana Glauca"

Every person who sees juniper will call this plant amazing. It is beautiful, graceful, and looks great in landscape design. Thanks to these properties, juniper has gained extraordinary popularity among designers of various varieties.

Planting and caring for this plant does not require special knowledge, so it has spread not only in urban park landscapes, but also in private gardens and local parks.

Beneficial features

Juniper foliage looks like pine needles, has a resinous smell and releases phytoncides that cleanse the air around the plant from pathogenic microbes.

What makes the plant unique is that it has the ability to heal those who are present nearby: people gain peace of mind, experience peace and tranquility. The plant also relieves headaches and normalizes sleep. This is such a useful juniper.

Planting and care, varieties and types of plants, how to propagate and grow them - read about this further.

Description

Juniper is a long-lived evergreen coniferous plant, which is presented in the form of shrubs and trees belonging to the Cypress family.

Tree-like representatives of juniper can reach 30 m in height, have a pyramidal or cone-shaped crown, consisting of scaly or needle-shaped needles.

Shrubby plants usually grow up to half a meter in height. They have spreading and flexible branches, which due to this form a thick and lush coniferous covering.

Juniper, the description of which can be found in many specialized sources, originally comes from the northern forests, but now gardeners have the opportunity to grow it anywhere.

From the fruits of this plant they make medicines for the treatment of kidney and urinary system diseases. Decoctions of juniper needles with fruits bring relief from skin diseases such as eczema, dermatitis and others. In addition, the plant is excellent as a spicy seasoning for some dishes.

Juniper (plant species are numerous - there are about 70 of them) has spread throughout the entire Northern Hemisphere of the planet.

Peculiarities

Juniper flowers are also very unusual: female flowers are round, light green cones, and male flowers look like earrings with several stamens. The plant blooms in June, and the fruiting period begins in August-September.

If you break a juniper cone, you will see that it is filled with a soft brown substance used for medicinal purposes.

In April-May, male types of juniper throw out spikelets yellow color, and female ones give green cones. The fruits of the plant are round cones up to one centimeter in diameter with three seeds inside. At first they are green in color, and when ripe they turn black-purple and have a waxy bluish coating. The berries are slightly bitter when tasting, with a pleasant spicy aroma.

Varieties and types of tree juniper

Juniper, the species of which are very numerous, is often found in urban areas and in private front gardens. This is explained by climatic conditions: gardeners prefer to grow unpretentious frost-resistant varieties.

The first group includes tall tree varieties. The vertical crowns of evergreen trees are suitable for decorating urban landscapes.

The most popular among gardeners and designers are the following varieties from the first group:

• Common juniper. This is a species with fragrant wood up to ten meters high with a dense crown, shaped like a cone or egg. Its trunk grows very slowly, so the tree lives up to 200 years. This species will withstand light shading, it is frost-resistant, and relatively unpretentious.
• Juniperus chinensis Stricta. It is also a tall, long-growing tree with a conical crown and blue-green needles. Loves sunny open spaces.
• Red cedar. This is a fast-growing tall tree that can reach thirty meters in height. Juniper has a narrow ovoid trunk with a wide crown and green needle-shaped needles. Easy to care for, resistant to pests and diseases.
• Forest juniper. Common northern cypress, forest juniper, planting and caring for it are extremely simple, since the tree is very unpretentious, but loves sunlight and does not tolerate shade. Prefers to grow in a mixture of sand and peat.

The tree group also includes low, rather beautiful views junipers, reaching from two to three meters in height. These include: juniper pyramidal, juniper Hibernica, juniper Horstmann, juniper rocky.

Bush juniper

The second group consists of shrubs of the following popular species:

• Juniper squamosus Meieri. evergreen shrub, characterized by the elegance of the crown and the original color of the needles, which have silver-blue tips. It loves the sun, so it fades in the shade.
• Juniper creeping horizontal. It has a second name - prostrate. This is a dioecious creeping shrub, has elongated branches with bluish-silver needles, scaly or needle-shaped. With the onset of frost, the crown becomes almost purple in color.
• Cossack juniper. Stunted look up to 1 m in height, having obliquely spread branches with dark green scaly needles with a pungent aroma. Very poisonous!
• Juniper Repanda. A dwarf shrub forty centimeters in height, reaching two meters in diameter. It has a cushion-shaped symmetrical creeping crown. The shrub is light-loving, undemanding to soil, and frost-resistant.

It is important to remember: each species is poisonous in different ways, so it is better to work with them while wearing gloves.

Juniper: planting and care

The best option for planting are young seedlings that are grown in special containers. This is done so that the plants grow faster. IN at a young age they tolerate transplantation more easily.

Replanting a mature juniper, such as a tall one like Chinese juniper, requires some experience and skill. As a rule, plants are grown in open ground, and before sale they are dug up and sold to buyers along with a lump of earth. It is wrapped in burlap soaked in water. The second option for sale is together with a container in which the plant has already taken root and taken root.

The best time to plant juniper is spring (April-May) or autumn (October). Seedlings sold in containers can be planted at any time, as their root system is protected.

For planting, choose an open sunny place, which is a condition for juniper to be decorative. In conditions of strong shade (under a wall), the plant will fade and may begin to wither.

Around the trunk of the plant it is necessary to mulch with a mixture of peat and pine wood shavings.

After planting is completed, the seedling is watered abundantly at the root.

Juniper: propagation

Juniper can be propagated by three generally accepted methods: cuttings, seeds and layering.

The best temperature conditions for rooting are:

• 16-19 ºC - before the buds open, and 23-26 ºC - after that;
• moist soil and systematic spraying;
• moderately diffused light.

Cuttings of this type, such as creeping juniper, should be rooted at an angle, and columnar varieties should be rooted vertically.

Only creeping juniper varieties can be propagated by layering during the growing season.

To grow non-ornamental species from seeds, the seed material is first stratified: sown in boxes in the fall, then taken out under the snow until May, and then sown in open ground.

To collect the seed material, the cone-shaped fruits are opened, the seeds are cleaned and dipped in sulfuric acid for thirty minutes, then washed thoroughly.

Plant cuttings

You can take plant cuttings all year round, but it is better to choose spring for this. To begin with, they are planted in a greenhouse for rooting, and in May or June they are transplanted into open ground under a film. If the transplant occurs in February-March, then they are transplanted into a greenhouse.

In order to take juniper cuttings, propagation should be done in the following sequence:

1. In mid-spring, one-year-old cuttings 10 cm long with a piece of old wood are cut from a ten-year-old plant, and 4 cm of needles are cleared from the bottom.
2. The bark is carefully trimmed with sharp scissors, and the cuttings are placed in a growth stimulator, for example, Heteroauxin, for a day.
3. In a peat-sand mixture prepared in equal parts, the cuttings are planted under a film and shaded.
4. The root system develops within 40 days; it is better to spray the cuttings with water than to water them.
5. Midsummer planting material Planted in the ground, it must be covered with spruce branches for the winter.
6. Additional rooting will last 2.5-3 years, after which mature seedlings can be transplanted to permanent place.

It is almost impossible to grow ornamental species from seeds; it is better to propagate such juniper by cuttings.

Care

Rooted plants do not require special care, but some rules should be followed:

1. In spring, the plant needs to be fed with nitroammophoska at the rate of 35 g per 1 m2.
2. The tree trunk circle should be regularly cleared of weeds or mulched. The mulch should be laid on black geotextiles.
3. For wintering, the juniper is tied with twine to protect the crown and trunk: from the weight of the snow, the crown may fall apart and the decorative effect will be lost.
4. Species with a crown of blue, yellow and variegated colors need to be protected from the spring sun. To do this, they need to be tied with spunbond or covered with green mesh.
5. Juniper requires timely, careful pruning, during which damaged and dry branches are removed.
6. Only young seedlings in the first year need shelter for wintering.

If these rules are not followed, the gardener will have to watch how juniper diseases develop.

Landing rules

The distance between plants depends on the size and type of juniper, but should not be less than half a meter for small ones and at least a meter for tall ones.

The depth of the hole depends on the size of the root system and the earthen coma. It should be 2.5 times larger than the coma and have a depth of up to 70 cm.

At the bottom there must be drainage from broken bricks and sand with a layer of 20 cm. The roots are covered with a soil mixture of turf soil, peat soil and sand in a ratio of 2:1:1.

Young seedlings require regular moderate watering, and adult plants have sufficient drought resistance. Therefore, they need to be watered up to three times a month, depending on the weather. Also, in hot weather, juniper is sprayed in the morning and evening twice per decade.

The watering rate is calculated based on the age and size of the plant, but on average it is 10-30 liters for an adult juniper.

Diseases and pests

Juniper diseases are as follows:

• fungal rust;
• gray mold;
• Schutte disease.

Dangerous pests include the following:

• juniper leaf miner;
• juniper scale insect;

If the fight is started on time, the plant can be saved even before it is completely defeated.

Against rust, which causes juniper to turn yellow, a solution of arceride in a proportion of 50 g per 10 liters of water works well; you need to spray it four times with an interval of ten days.

When attacked by aphids, the plant must be sprayed with Fitoverm at the rate of 2 g per 1 liter of water twice with an interval of two weeks.

“Decis” is used against moths in a proportion of 2.5 g per 10 l, the spraying scheme is similar to the previous one.

Spider mites are treated with Karate in a volume of 50 g per 10 l, and scale insects are treated with karbofos at a rate of 70 g per 10 l of water.

Evergreens have always attracted human attention with their durability and beauty. Juniper (Juniperus) ranks among coniferous trees a special place, not only due to its beauty, but also to its unique properties. The abundance of species and varieties of juniper allows you to choose a tree suitable for any purpose. A proper care, protection from diseases and pests, will allow you to enjoy its aroma and beauty for many years.

Today, there are about one hundred varieties of juniper, united by common species characteristics. Some of them arose as a result of natural mutations, some were created through the process of targeted selection.

In nature, there are approximately 70 species of juniper (juniperus), of which only 15 have so far been cultivated. The following are considered the most common in landscape design:

• common juniper;
• rocky;
• Virginia;
• Cossack;
• Chinese;
• average;
• scaly;
• horizontal.

Most types of juniper are distinguished by frost resistance, undemanding living conditions and care, as well as a pleasant aroma of wood and pine needles, the severity of which, however, varies depending on the species. Trees with scaly needles smell stronger than those with needles.

Crown shape varies, although most species can be shaped by pruning. Cone-shaped and pyramidal crown shapes are good for group plantings. Initially, four forms are distinguished:

• cone-shaped;
• pyramidal;
• crying;
• creeping.

Also, types of junipers are grouped according to several other principles, for example, winter hardiness, toxicity, unpretentiousness.

Representatives of the Cossack juniper are poisonous; virgin and rock junipers are unpretentious. Winter hardiness is characteristic of almost all species, with the exception of some less common ones, including:

• leaning;
• Turkestan;
• red;
• Zeravshansky

Due to their external beauty, some species can be classified as a special group of ornamental junipers, this applies to:

• ordinary;
• horizontal;
• average;
• scaly junipers.

When choosing a type and variety of juniper to grow on your site, it is important to determine in advance the purpose it will serve. This will help you choose the most suitable type of tree, based on its species characteristics.

Common juniper

Representatives of the common juniper species are highly resistant to adverse weather conditions - cold, frost, lack of water or light. Varieties belonging to the species juniperus communis are extremely decorative, and their slow growth allows them to be used for growing bonsai trees.

The following varieties are considered popular varieties belonging to this species:

Gold Cone

Tall tree (up to 4 m tall) with a dense cone-shaped crown. Annual growth is about 10 cm in height, 5 cm in girth. It grows most actively in summer. With the beginning of autumn, the bright golden needles turn yellow-green, and by winter the color turns bronze. It is not picky about the composition of the soil, but does not tolerate compaction or excess moisture. It prefers to grow in sunny places; with a lack of light, the needles turn green. The first few years it needs additional care: watering, shelter from direct sun, tying up branches in winter.

Hibernika

Representatives of this juniper variety can reach 3.5 m in height and 1 m in girth.

The shape of the crown is narrowly columnar, the annual growth rate is approximately 10 and 5 cm. The needles are quite soft, not prickly, the color is green with a bluish tint. Frost-resistant, prefers sunny places. Not picky about soil composition. In spring, it is recommended to protect this juniper from bright sun, and in the winter - tie the branches to protect them from snow.

Green Carpet

Unlike its counterparts, the common juniper of this variety is quite short - only 0.5 m in height, but in width it can reach one and a half meters. The annual growth is about 5/15 cm, respectively.

The unusual shape of the crown pleases the eye - thick, ground cover. This variety is well suited for decorating slopes and growing in rocky gardens.

Suecica

Another variety with a columnar crown shape. It can reach 4/1 m in height and width. The approximate annual growth is 15 and 5 cm for each indicator. This is a fairly dense shrub with vertically growing shoots. The needles on the branches are colored in a beautiful bluish-green shade.

The variety is frost-resistant, characterized by slow growth and unpretentiousness to growing conditions. Like other varieties, it prefers sunny places; with a lack of light, the crown loses its shape and becomes spreading. This shrub lends itself well to shaping and pruning, which allows it to be used in decorative purposes for creating various landscape compositions.

Rocky

native to mountainous regions. Very hardy, easily copes with drought, frost-resistant. Looks great in rocky gardens and alpine slides. The most decorative varieties of rock juniper:

Very tall trees, up to 7-8 meters in height. The crown shape is columnar, the width of an adult plant is 1 m. The annual growth rate is 15 and 5 cm, respectively. The shoots grow densely, the needles are soft and have a pleasant green color. In general, it is not demanding in terms of conditions and care, but does not grow well in soils that are too saline or waterlogged. The branches must be tied up for the winter to avoid damage.

Blue Arrow

Tall juniper, up to 5 m in height, has a narrow columnar crown (up to 0.7 m in girth).

Annual growth is 10 and 5 cm. The crown is made up of densely growing, vertical, hard branches, decorated with scales of soft needles of rich blue color. Prefers sunny places, loose soil, unpretentious to conditions, resistant to cold.

Virgin

Virgin juniper varieties are considered one of the least capricious and demanding of care or maintenance conditions. These trees grow safely on any soil, in any weather conditions. For its crown shape and wood quality Virginia juniper often called a "pencil tree".

The following varieties are particularly decorative:

Spreading low (up to 1.5 m in height) shrub. Dense wide crown of gray, silver-green needles. The variety lends itself well to pruning, so the shape of the crown can be changed as needed. The width of an adult plant is approximately 2 m. Annual growth in height and width is about 10 and 15 cm, respectively. Categorically does not accept excess water in the soil, it loves light.

A tall tree with soft greenish needles. The crown shape is pyramidal and can reach 3 m in height.

One of the most famous varieties juniper virginiana.

Attracts attention with silver-green needles covering numerous shoots that form a cone-shaped crown.

A fast-growing variety of juniper with a columnar crown and soft dark green needles.

With the onset of autumn, the tree is decorated with small but numerous blue fruits.

Cossack

Along with numerous advantages, which include undemandingness to growing conditions and resistance to adverse weather conditions, Cossack juniper has a serious drawback. Its shoots are extremely poisonous, as they contain sabinol, a toxic substance that can increase bleeding and have an abortifacient effect. They look good in group plantings and rocky gardens.

The following varieties belong to this type:

Variegata

Very beautiful bush surprises with the combination of green and cream shades of scaly needles on the branches. This variety of Cossack juniper does not tolerate excessive soil moisture, grows slowly, is frost-resistant, and light-loving.

Blue Danube

Representatives of this variety are dense shrubs with creeping branches.

M. Cossack Blu Danube

The color of the scaly needles is green, and by autumn it gives way to a silvery-bluish tint.

A low plant, up to 1 meter in height, that surprises with the unexpected bronze hue that its gray-blue needles acquire in winter. The width of an adult plant is up to 2 m, and the annual growth is 3 and 5 cm. It is photophilous, prefers sunny places, and is not picky about other conditions.

An unusual variety of Cossack juniper, growing like a carpet over the surface of the earth. The height and width of an adult plant reach 0.5 and 2.5 m, respectively; per year the growth is about 3/5 cm. The creeping shape of the crown makes it look like a fluffy green pillow of soft pine needles.

Chinese juniper

Most often, Chinese juniper is used to create bonsai trees, as they have a slow growth rate. Habitat: Japan, China, Korea.

Varieties of this species include:

Dwarf frost-resistant variety Chinese juniper. The height can reach 2 m, the width of an adult plant is about 80 cm. The crown shape is cone-shaped. The needles are colored green with a blue tint. In landscape design it is used as bright accent for compositions, for single plantings or forming a hedge.

Blaauw

A low (up to 1.5 m in height) shrub with an asymmetrical crown shape and brightly colored needles with a light blue tint.

This variety of Chinese juniper has a slow growth rate.

Kuriwao Gold

An ornamental variety of Chinese juniper, it attracts attention with its asymmetrical crown shape and combination of dark and light areas of needles.

Prefers sunny places, as in the shade the needles lose their brightness. It is used in different ways in landscape design, as it looks great in single, group plantings or rocky gardens.

Juniper medium

This species is a hybrid of common and Cossack junipers. It was called Pfitzeriana. Inherited from them extreme resistance to adverse climatic conditions and improper care. Juniper medium Pfitzeriana is distinguished by its wide varietal diversity. Its most popular varieties:

Old Gold

A very beautiful decorative Dutch variety that attracts attention with its soft golden needles. This is a fairly compact shrub, reaching 2 m in width and only 1.5 m in height. In landscape design it is used to decorate wells and create hedges.

Gold Star

This variety of juniper Pfitzeriana is rightly called the golden star of the garden.

Its bright golden yellow needles immediately attract attention. This is a low spreading shrub, reaching 1 and 2 m in height and width. It prefers to grow in a sunny place, as growth slows down in the shade. It tolerates frost well and can grow on any soil.

An attractive low shrub with graceful arched branches forming a spreading crown. Scaly needles of bright green color effectively set off the gray berries, which gives this juniper variety a special decorative effect. Photophilous, used in group plantings to create alpine slides.

Also included in this species are the varieties Pfitzeriana Aurea, Pfitzeriana Glauka, etc.

Scaly junipers

The homeland of junipers of this species is the Himalayas and China. It, like other species, is extremely unpretentious to growing conditions, grows well in any type of soil, and easily tolerates drought and severe frosts. The most decorative varieties The following are considered to be of this type:

Blue Carpet and Blue Swede

Quite similar varieties, united by a beautiful silver-blue shade of needles. These are spreading low shrubs, distinguished by rapid growth and used to strengthen slopes.

They prefer sunny places, are easy to form a crown, and are frost-resistant.

The variety is highly decorative due to effective combination green old needles and bright golden young ones. The bush is spreading and wide.

Horizontal

Horizontal juniper is a ground cover plant, most often used to decorate slopes and retaining walls. Its homeland is North America. The following varieties belong to the horizontal juniper species:

A low-growing shrub characterized by blue colored needles with a light steely sheen. It prefers acidic soils, tolerates emissions and air pollution well, and is frost-resistant.

golden flame

Shrubs of this horizontal juniper variety change color with age. Adult needles are bright green, the needles on young shoots have a golden hue.

It needs additional care - in the spring, dead needles are removed from the shoots of the bush, since it itself does not shed them.

Rules for planting juniper

Despite the fact that juniper is quite unpretentious, when planting it, you must follow some rules in order to get good results. As a rule, juniper is planted closer to mid-spring or in September. If a seedling with a closed root ball was purchased, it is planted in a permanent place throughout the warm season.

Choosing appropriate place For planting, several conditions should be taken into account:

• juniper prefers to grow in well-lit places; it does not tolerate shading;
• This plant should not be planted on waterlogged soils or near groundwater;
• some species need protection from wind and drafts;
• It is important to provide the plant with space; it does not tolerate cramped conditions.

The first stage of planting a seedling is preparing the planting hole. Its dimensions should be significantly larger than the root ball of the plant. It is also important to comply optimal distance between seedlings (from 0.5 m for dwarf species to 2-3 meters for tall ones). However, in group plantings or hedges, the distance may be less than recommended.

Large species of junipers are best planted in light, fertile soils, but dwarf varieties a soil containing not much nutrients, otherwise they lose their decorative effect.

A layer of drainage must be laid at the bottom of the hole using expanded clay or broken brick. Then the substrate is added and the seedling is placed. It is important to ensure that you do not deepen the root collar. This will slow down growth and may cause plant disease. Ideally, the seedling is replanted together with a ball of earth to minimize possible damage to the roots.

After planting, the hole is covered with earth and watered abundantly with settled warm water. Then the circle around the trunk is mulched using any suitable materials.

Care, fertilizer, wintering

As has already been mentioned many times, junipers are completely undemanding to care and grow well without outside intervention. They only need watering during long droughts and in the first year after planting. Also, all types of juniper do not require fertilization, and for some this is even contraindicated.

Almost all types of juniper are frost-resistant, so they do not need special shelter from the cold during the wintering period, except for the very first winter after planting, when the seedling is not yet strong enough. For young plants, spruce branches or any non-woven material are used as shelter. At the end of winter and early spring, juniper should be protected from bright sunlight, otherwise the needles on the shoots will turn brown.

Trees with a cone-shaped and columnar crown need tying up branches, as they can break under the weight of snow.

Diseases and pests

Like most other plants, juniper is susceptible to diseases and pest attacks. The most common disease of this plant is rust.

Its symptoms are orange growths on the branches and main trunk. As a rule, they appear at the very beginning of summer. This disease also affects fruit and ornamental plants, from which it can spread to juniper, so it’s better not to plant them nearby.

To eliminate the disease, it is necessary to remove the affected parts of the plant and then treat them with a fungicide. As a preventative measure, it is recommended to use various immunostimulants.

If juniper grows in conditions high humidity and was exposed to low temperatures, there is a possibility of developing another fungal disease - Schutte. Its symptoms are yellowing and browning of the needles, the appearance of black growths on the needles at the end of summer. Most often, this disease affects plants growing in the shade. Control measures are similar to the previous ones.

Juniper can be attacked by several insects:

• Spider mite. It appears in the cobwebs entangling the shoots of the plant, and small yellow specks on the needles.
• Aphid. If these insects are found on a plant, you need to treat not only the juniper itself, but also the colony of ants that breed it.
• Scale insects. Their presence is noticeable to the naked eye - they are round or oval scutes up to 2 mm in length. Symptoms of their appearance are drying and falling of the needles, dying of the tree bark.

Juniper (Juniperus) is one of the most attractive coniferous plants, not only due to its unpretentiousness and beauty, but also the wonderful aroma of wood and pine needles. If you follow simple rules for planting and caring for it, you can decorate your site for many years.

Video

Evergreen junipers, which naturally spread from the polar regions to the subtropics, are recognized not only as one of the most ancient plants, but also as the most valuable crops for landscaping. Having studied common junipers, types and varieties with photos, descriptions and features, you can transform and country cottage area, and extensive gardening areas.

All existing varieties of these plants have:

• creeping, shrubby or tree-like form;
• scaly or needle-like leaves;
• fruits in the form of small dense cones with closed scales.

Thanks to the highest degree of adaptability, junipers were able to survive the climatic disasters of the past and settle in various natural areas. This property, as well as its exotic beauty, attracted attention to plants that have become indispensable in the design of rocky corners, rock gardens, and borders.

Common juniper (J. communis)

One of the most common types of juniper is found in Europe, northern Africa, Asia and even on the lands of the North American continent.

The common juniper shown in the photo has the form of a bush or small tree. In favorable conditions, a plant with dense leaves, consisting of branches covered with needle-shaped leaves up to 15 mm long, reaches a height of 3–8 meters. Sometimes junipers, divided into female and male specimens, grow up to 12 meters.

The common juniper, like all its relatives, is a long-lived and slow-growing crop. It is not uncommon for specimens to live to be a hundred years old or older. older than age. Moreover, the beauty of the plant is better revealed with increased soil and air humidity.

The crown, resembling a pyramid or cone, thanks to its hard, prickly needles, remains decorative throughout the year and tolerates pruning without problems, which is important when growing juniper as an ornamental crop. And the leaves themselves live for about 4 years and are gradually replaced.

The bluish-blue cones of the plant ripen only in the second year.

Location on common juniper, in the photo, has an unpretentious character, high frost resistance and undemanding nutrition. The popularity of this plant is added by the presence of many varieties with traditional green, gray-silver or golden foliage, with a pyramidal, conical or squat flattened crown.

Photos of juniper varieties of this species are striking in their diversity, and their agricultural technology is accessible even to beginners.

Juniper Depressa is a cultivated variety of the plant found in Canada. According to various sources, this species is considered independent, Canadian, or is recognized as a subspecies of common juniper. It is distinguished from the usual form by a wide, drooping or prostrate crown and a height not exceeding one and a half meters.

The needle-like leaves of the plant have a brownish color, which becomes almost bronze by winter, increasing the decorative value of the evergreen plant.

Juniper Depressa Aurea is close in appearance to the variety described above, but its hedgehog foliage is more attractive. Young shoots of the plant have a bright light green, almost yellow or golden color, which gives the name to the juniper variety of the species Juniperus communis shown in the photo.

Siberian juniper (J. sibirica)

This type of juniper was named after Siberia, where plants with small needles and a squat crown can be found in mountainous areas. In addition to the Siberian region, the culture is widespread in the northern regions of Europe, the Far East, Crimea, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Everywhere, Siberian juniper plants prefer to settle in dry rocky areas

TO characteristic features Siberian juniper can be attributed to: short stature, slow pace of development and decorative, needle-like foliage thanks to light stripes, living for about 2 years. The round, bluish berries ripen in the second year after formation.

In the wild, due to its slow growth and small size, Siberian juniper needs protection. The plant is more comfortable in the garden even with minimal care. Undemanding look:

• survives dry periods without loss;
• is content with low-nutrient soils;
• not afraid of frost;
• takes root in areas where there is a risk of increased gas and air pollution;
• loves light and does not need shading.

Over time, trailing juniper shoots can take root, causing the crowns to grow and create living borders. The Siberian variety is ideal for decorating slides.

Cossack juniper (J. sabina)

Another common type of juniper is interesting for the gardener because, in addition to endurance, it has two varieties of needles. The first, needle-shaped foliage up to 6 mm long, can be seen on young shoots, as well as on branches located in the shade. The second, scaly type of foliage is the needles on adult branches.

On average, the foliage with its rich, resinous aroma characteristic of juniper lives for three years. Round or oval dense berries ripen in the second year.

Compared to the common juniper, the Cossack juniper shown in the photo is not so tall and noticeable. The height of the creeping shrub with a dense, squat crown is about one and a half meters. But this did not stop juniper from being appreciated and used to decorate parks and formal gardens from the end of the 16th century.

Thanks to the breeding of varieties with dark green, gray and light needles, an undemanding, winter-hardy and drought-tolerant plant will be indispensable on the hills. It is used to secure slopes and create living borders that hold their shape well.

Chinese juniper (J. chinensis)

Among all the junipers, this plant from the Cypress family stands out for its impressive size. The crown of a native of China, Korea and Manchuria grows to a height of 25 meters. Chinese juniper, in the photo, has needle-like needles on young shoots, which, as the thin branches mature, are replaced by small scaly foliage. Small cones of the plant can be colored bluish, brown or black, and covered with a bluish coating.

The first specimens of Chinese juniper in Europe appeared in early XIX century. In Russia, these plants were planted a little later on Black Sea coast where they still meet today. But unlike other species, the Chinese variety needs moist soil and air more, and therefore often suffers from drought. The frost resistance limit of the crop is −30 °C. Therefore, in the middle zone without shelter, plants can freeze out.

It is interesting that despite the large size of adult specimens, Chinese juniper, as in the photo, is often used for.

Juniper (J. procumbens)

In Japan and other countries in the region, recumbent juniper is found with a creeping or drooping crown, covered with green or, more often, bluish-blue needles.

Plants with a height of 50 to 400 cm are adapted to a humid maritime climate, so in the Russian central zone they can suffer in dry air, as well as from frost in particularly harsh winters.

In its homeland, juniper of this species is one of the favorite plants for creating spectacular ones.

Juniperus rigida (J. rigida)

Many Far Eastern junipers are now actively used in garden and park plantings. Hard juniper - the indigenous inhabitant of this fertile region chooses coastal sandy slopes and shores as habitats. Plants settle on windy clones under the cover of larger trees. Here, junipers take on a creeping form and, at a height of up to 40 cm, thanks to two-meter shoots, form dense, difficult-to-pass groups.

In favorable conditions, hard juniper reaches a height of 8 meters. The crown, covered with yellow-green prickly needles, is dense in male specimens, while female plants are more transparent.

Very unpretentious appearance juniper is not common enough in cultivation. At the same time, the plant can be interesting for park landscaping and creating authentic, oriental corners in small areas.

When growing durum juniper, you need to take into account that on acidic soils the plant feels depressed and loses its decorative effect due to its already low growth rate.

Prostrate juniper (J. horizontalis)

The name of this species speaks volumes about appearance and characteristic features of the plant. Prostrate juniper has a squat, even creeping crown with a height of 10 to 30 cm. The plant is native to Canada, where it prefers to settle on sandy slopes, on the shores of lakes or in mountainous areas, also called. Although the species is frost-resistant, not picky when choosing soil and perfectly strengthens the slopes, when planting it you need to take into account that in drought conditions the juniper feels depressed, its needles lose their brightness and tone.

In ornamental gardening, horizontal juniper is valued for its needles with two light, almost white stripes. Based on the wild form, more than a hundred cultivated varieties have been created today, differing in foliage color and crown shape.

Juniper medium (J. x media)

At breeding work with junipers, it was found that certain species can produce stable hybrids that are interesting to gardeners. An example of such successful hybridization is the medium juniper, obtained from crossing the Cossack and spherical varieties (J. sphaerica). The first specimens of this species were grown at the end of the 19th century in Germany, and then spread throughout Europe and throughout the world.

Evergreen plants of medium juniper, as in the photo, can have a creeping, prostrate or wide spreading crown. Depending on the variety, plants of this species grow up to 3–5 meters. The needles are scaly and needle-shaped and are colored in green and bluish tones. There are varieties with a golden crown.

Although the plants are winter-hardy, there is a risk of freezing. Therefore, in the middle zone and to the north, junipers are covered for the winter months, which is not difficult given the squat, relatively small crown of the plant.

Rock juniper (J. scopulorum)

The North American continent has given the world many shrubs. In the Rocky Mountains, famous for their rugged beauty, the rock juniper shown in the photo was discovered.

This form is distinguished by its pyramidal shape and scaly needles, which, depending on the variety, can be rich green or gray, almost blue. The slender evergreen plant was grown in parks and greenhouses in the first half of the 19th century. During this time, more than 20 cultivated varieties were obtained. With minimal care and protection in severe frosts, adult plants easily maintain a pyramidal shape and slowly develop, reaching a height of 12 meters.

Virginia juniper (J. virginiana)

Red cedar or Virginian juniper is an indigenous inhabitant of the north of the American continent. The plant owes its unusual nickname to its record growth for junipers. Adult specimens of this species are powerful trees up to 30 meters high with trunks whose diameter reaches one and a half meters.

The large tree-like form is not the only difference between the species. Juniperus virginiana, in the photo, has fairly rapid growth. This circumstance was immediately appreciated by the Americans, who began cultivating the crop in the middle of the 17th century.

The plant has small needles of a mixed type and the same medium-sized cones, which ripen the same year after formation. In Russia, this species is suitable for cultivation in the southern regions; in its homeland, the wood is used for making stationery pencils and obtaining essential oil. For ornamental gardening, many compact varieties and interspecific hybrids with silver, bluish and light needles have been bred.

Scaly juniper (J. squamata)

China, Taiwan and the Himalayas are the habitat of another species of juniper with a dense, decorative crown up to one and a half meters high.

This is the scaly juniper shown in the photo, which easily tolerates dry air and poor soil, but is not winter-hardy enough for middle zone Russia.

Dahurian juniper (J. davurica)

Far East Russia, the northern regions of China and Mongolia are the birthplace of another decorative look juniper, characterized not only by its creeping shape and slow growth rate, but also by its long life.

Dahurian juniper plants can grow and develop for more than a hundred years, while their shoots in diameter do not exceed five centimeters.

The species described in late XVIII century, due to its hard wood, ability to settle on poor soils, including rocky heaps, and compact size, the indigenous people call it stone heather.

The above-ground part of the juniper does not exceed 50 cm in height; the trunk is often hidden in the ground, which helps the shoots take root and makes the plant very valuable for strengthening steep slopes, hills and embankments. Light green needles take on a brownish-brown hue by winter. Ripe spherical cones have the same color. Daurian juniper is decorative, unpretentious and extremely winter-hardy.

Video about the types and varieties of juniper in the country

Incredible interesting view from the complete and quite diverse set of all existing conifers ornamental trees is juniper.

Representatives are less than 30 cm high, and quite tall two-meter crops are also found. Nowadays, there are almost 80 subspecies of juniper and its decorative forms. (Review various types juniper you can read).

It can be difficult even for experienced summer residents to decide on this wide range. Each variety has its own biological characteristics and care methods. The rest of the article provides a description of five types of ornamental coniferous shrubs belonging to the medium juniper subspecies.

Mint Julep

Common type. It has elegantly dangling shoot tips and evergreen arching, curved branches.

The maximum height of the variety is almost 2 meters, and the diameter of the juniper is about 4 meters. Large berries-cones of blue-gray color.

The species is growing quite rapidly. Decorative scaly needles are bright green.

Specialist's note: every part of the Mint Julep juniper is extremely poisonous.

The variety prefers only sunny places. It grows almost everywhere. Suitable for growing are dry, fresh, fertile, acidic and alkaline soils.

Even urban conditions are a great place to grow juniper. It can be planted in rocky gardens. Does not require constant watering unless the summer is dry. Frost-resistant. This species grows beneficially where there are no obstacles to the passage of sunlight.

When planting, a distance of about one and a half meters must be maintained between plants. The depth of the planting hole is 70 cm. Place brick or sand drainage at the bottom. Its thickness is approximately 25 cm.

Advice experienced gardeners: The root collar should not be buried when planting.

Having planted a shrub, you need to remember that it needs thorough watering during the week. Fertilizer needs to be applied only once a year - in the spring.

Young bushes need to be loosened superficially. In order for the plant to survive the winter, it is covered with a layer (about 10 cm) of peat, and newly planted shrubs are covered with spruce branches.

Pfitzeriana Aurea

The variety Pfitzeriana Aurea, which has a spreading crown, grows to a maximum height of 3 m. Growth is uniform and fast. On the yellow-green needles you can see golden shoots with soft scales. The species does not have berries.

Such a juniper is successfully suitable for planning on its own garden plot hedge of small height. It can be grown in large containers and on rocky slopes.

In general, juniper is unpretentious, but loves straight Sun rays. Frost-resistant, it is not afraid of dry summers and the burns of the spring sun. Loves moist and drained soil. The Pfitzeriana Aurea variety does not need to be pruned.

The main care is to remove dry and damaged shoots. The main enemies of the shrub are sawfly and aphids. Powdery mildew is his main disease.

Blue and Gold

Peculiar - Blue and Gold. It grows slowly. After 10 years, its height reaches one meter.

Spreading crown with yellow-blue shoots. The bush bears fruit. It develops cones and blue berries.

Loves the sun. Growing in the shade, the species becomes pale. Grows on all soils. A small salt content in the soil is not a barrier. The variety is winter-hardy.

Juniper propagates using spring cuttings. They then take root successfully. With the help of this culture, contrasting park compositions are created. No haircut required. Ideal for developing hedges.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with a photo review of varieties of Chinese juniper:

King of Spring

Juniper variety King of Spring - coniferous shrub, having a voluminous spreading crown. The branches intensively intertwine with each other.

Coniferous needles, soft, dense, green-yellow in color. Young needles are golden. It is necessary to plant in a sunny place, as in the shade the appearance becomes less contrasting.

Juniper is unpretentious, but will grow better in loose, slightly acidic, loamy or sandy loam soils. Resistant variety to urban cultivation.

With its help, magnificent landscape compositions. Requires pruning, watering in dry summers and shelter in winter time.

Pfitzeriana Glauc

Juniper variety Pfitzeriana Glauka blue. It grows relatively quickly. It has a spreading, branched and uneven crown.

Needle-like leaves. They are strongly pointed and slightly prickly. The color is gray-silver and gray-green. In winter, a light blue-purple coating appears on the needles.

This juniper is unpretentious. Any soil is considered favorable for its growth. Heat and drought are not an obstacle to growth. This variety is usually planted in a fairly large city park. Access to direct sunlight is required.

Description of juniper varieties Golden Carpet and Green Carpet:

Planting must be done in a planting hole; careful constant watering is required. Peat and sawdust are used for mulching. Care consists of spring pruning bush. This is usually done in order to be able to form a chic crown.

Watch the video in which a specialist explains in detail the features of growing juniper medium Pfitzerian Glauck: