It is hard to imagine modern landscape design without a huge range of junipers that combine almost all the main wishes of the gardener: evergreen, unusually plastic in shape, with a diverse palette of colors and at the same time surprisingly unpretentious, resistant to frost and heat, undemanding to soil fertility and moisture. . Junipers are one of the few that tolerate soil salinization, which is very important for part of the territory of Russia. If you are just starting to plan a new site or want to transform an old garden, believe me, you can choose the types and varieties of junipers for any corner of the garden and solve any design problem. Among the junipers there are large trees, slender columns and lush bushes, ground cover and cascading down, cute dwarfs for a container or alpine slide and giants for wind protection and site fencing. Junipers are excellent cutters and are suitable for hedges and topiaries. It is impossible to talk about all the variety of these wonderful plants in one article, so let's talk about the most popular and, importantly, those that do not require much trouble for the gardener.
Junipers in the area
One of the most stable and unpretentious can rightfully be considered virgin juniper (or virginian from the name of the state of Virginia) (Juniperus virginiana) comes from North America, where it occurs naturally from Canada to Florida on windswept rocky mountain slopes and along river banks. In nature, these are large trees up to 30 m high and with a trunk diameter of up to 1.5 m. In the USA it is called the “pencil tree”, because juniper wood is resistant to decay and, among other things, is used to make pencils. This type of juniper was previously quite often used in green building, but now it is preferred. decorative varieties, which have retained the unpretentiousness of the species, are very winter-hardy (zone 4) and drought-resistant, tolerate salinity and partial shading. This juniper cuts very well and is great for both tall hedges and niwaki. Since cones ripen in large numbers every year in the fall, planting material for hedges, it is easy to obtain by sowing the seeds immediately after harvesting into the ground or after stratifying the seeds for 3-4 months. Varieties are propagated by grafting and cuttings. The most popular varieties of virgin juniper:
‘Glauca’ is an almost columnar form with silver-colored needles, growing up to 5 m tall, densely branching.
‘Canaertii’ - differs from the previous species in dark green needles, grows in the form of an oval-columnar dense tree 5-7 m in height, very beautiful in autumn, covered with countless bluish-blue cones.
Juniper virginian ‘Burkii’ is a tall (up to 5-6 m), pyramidal fast-growing variety with green-blue non-thorny needles, at the age of 10 years it reaches 3 m in height with a crown diameter of 1.5 m.
Variety ‘Pendula’ grows up to 15 m in height as a tree with spreading weeping branches covered with bluish-green needles.
Red cedar 
Juniperus virginica ‘Glauca’
Several popular varieties grow in breadth and are more often painted in silver tones. Very resistant to almost any conditions 'Hetz' - fast growing large bush(2-3 m wide and high) with gray needles, suitable only for large gardens. The most beautiful among them, almost shining ‘Grey Owl’ grows up to 2-3 m, the ends of the branches gracefully droop, and is also famous for its large number of cones, which give it an additional decorative effect. Slightly more compact ‘Blue Cloud‘ is a dwarf form with small bluish-gray needles 0.4–0.5 m high, up to 1–1.5 m wide.
Another frost-resistant species native to the mountainous regions of North America - rocky juniper (J. scopulorum). Here it grows in the form of a pyramidal tree with dark green or bluish needles over 10 m high. Arrow', as well as the wider and sky blue 'Moonglow' and 'Blue Haven' are rightfully the most sought after as an accent coniferous composition, as well as for high hedges, especially in areas with hot dry summers due to their exceptional resistance to adverse factors.
Juniper rock ‘Blue Arrow’ 
Rock Juniper ‘Moonglow’
Common juniper (J. communis) is often found in forests of the Northern Hemisphere throughout Europe to Greenland, Asia and North America, as well as in North Africa, Nepal and Pakistan, where it grows both on dry mountain slopes and in swamps. It is clear that a plant with such an extensive range is very plastic and adapted to a variety of conditions. Depending on the place of growth, the common juniper can be a tall tree with a cone-shaped crown up to 10-12 m high or an almost creeping shrub, reaching only 20 cm to 1 meter in height. In the mountains of Central Asia, local subspecies form fantastic winding forms called archa. Common juniper has strong phytoncidal properties; in medicine, its cones are used for medicinal purposes. In ornamental gardening, its varieties with different crown shapes and needle colors are used. Common juniper is not afraid of frost, but in spring its young needles can burn in the sun, so it is worth taking measures to cover plants with agrofibre, etc.
The popular variety 'Hibernica' with a narrow pyramidal or columnar crown grows up to 4 m tall. There is also a variegated variety ‘Hibernica Variegata’.
Variety ‘Suecica’ differs from ‘Hibernica’ in a wider habit and hanging ends of branches, grows up to 8 m with a diameter of 1.5 m. Frost resistance zone -4.
The more compact and slender variety ‘Sentinel’ at the age of 10 reaches a height of 2 m and withstands frosts down to -40 ° C.
For small flower beds, on an alpine hill or near the porch, you can plant a narrow-columnar, compact and slow-growing variety 'Arnold', reaching from 1 to 2 m, also compact 'Erecta' and 'Bakony'. ‘Gold cone’ and ‘Schneverdinger Goldmachangel’ are slow-growing columnar forms with golden yellow needles in bloom.
Unlike slender columns, ‘Candelabriformis’ grows as a gracefully drooping weeping tree about 2.5 m high. Also pay attention to ‘Horstmann’, the most picturesque weeping juniper, especially beautiful on the shore of a reservoir or on a lawn. Juniper ‘Mayer’ grows in the form of a luxurious silvery fountain up to 3 m high.
Common juniper ‘Horstmann’ 
Common Juniper ‘Repanda’
There are also many dwarf varieties for rock garden and cultivation in containers. These are blue-green prostrate 'Green Carpet', 'Hornibrookii', 'Repanda' and 'Depressa' only up to 0.2-0.7 m high and up to 3 m wide and golden 'Depressa aurea' , 'Gold beach', ' Gold Coin', 'Golden Juniper', etc. ‘Berkshire’ and ‘Echiniformis’ grow in the form of a thick cushion.
Juniper Chinese (J. chinensis) is found in the Primorsky Territory, in Northeast China, Korea, Japan, although it grows into a large broad-pyramidal tree up to 20 m tall, it is considered slow-growing, which is why it is most often used to form bonsai. It is also very unpretentious appearance, wintering well throughout Russia and to the north (zone 4a -5a), enduring drought and poverty of soil without loss, but growing better on fairly fertile and moist soils.
In ornamental gardening, several dozen varieties of various shapes and colors are known. tall plants for hedge and solitary planting: green columnar 'Ketelerii', 'Ames' and 'Spartan' or green-silver 'Monarch', 'Obelisk', 'Mountbatten'. For small areas and as an accent in the flower bed, choose the more compact varieties ‘Robusta Green’, ‘Stricta’ or similar, with original white-cream splashes of ‘Stricta Variegata’.
Chinese juniper ‘Keteleeri’ 
Chinese juniper 'Spartan'
Several varieties of Chinese juniper grow in the form of a beautiful sprawling bush that resembles a fountain. These are the golden ‘Kuriwao Gold’ and the bluish-silver ‘Blue Alps’ with gracefully drooping ends of the shoots and growing in height and width up to 2-2.5 m. The picturesque “fountain” forms the ‘Blaauw’ variety.
Chinese Juniper ‘Blue Alps’ 
Chinese juniper 'Blaauw' 
Chinese juniper ‘Hetzii’
Plants with this habit can be planted as an accent in a flower bed or on the shore of a reservoir. Fast growing large plants also varieties with green needles 'Kosteriana' and silver 'Hetzii'. If your garden is not very large, opt for more compact varieties such as the golden 'Plumosa Aurea' or the variegated 'Expansa Variegata'.
Chinese Juniper ‘Expansa Variegata’ 
Chinese Juniper ‘Kuriwao Gold’
Cossack juniper (J. sabína) is found wild in the forests of Europe, Siberia and Primorye, Southeast Asia, on the rocky slopes of the Caucasus, Asia Minor and the Urals. This is an extremely winter-hardy juniper (zone 3), often growing as a creeping shrub 1-1.5 m high, forming dense thickets. It is also drought-resistant and photophilous, undemanding to the soil, therefore it is often used to strengthen slopes. Its varieties differ in size, habit and needle color. The most beautiful variety can be called ‘Tamariscifolia’ with a compact creeping crown and deep green with gray tint thick needles. Now in garden centers they offer this variety also grafted on a trunk. ‘Rockery Gem’ with bluish-green needles reaches a height of 1m with a diameter of up to 5m. The 'Glauca' variety has blue-green needles, the 'Buffalo' variety is a real ground cover that will hang down in a retaining wall in a beautiful cascade.
Juniper Cossack ‘Tamariscifolia’ 
Juniper Cossack ‘Rockery Gem’
Juniper medium (J. x media) is considered a hybrid between J. chinensis and J. sabina, which has incorporated both remarkable resistance to adverse factors and a wide variety of habit and color. The most popular varieties are the prostrate green 'Pfitzeriana', growing up to 1 m in height and 2-3 m in diameter and the more compact 'Pfitzeriana Compacta', the silver 'Pfitzeriana Glauca' and the golden 'Pfitzeriana Aurea'. Young seedlings of the ‘Mint Julep’ variety with a very beautiful bright green color are often confused with the traditional Cossack juniper, but this variety grows very quickly not only in width but also in height and will soon become too large for a small garden. The most wonderful among the golden varieties 'Old Gold' and the more elegant 'Gold Coast' should have their place in every garden. There is also an original variegated variety ‘Variegata’.
Juniper medium ‘Old Gold’ 
Juniper 'Mint Julep'
Juniper scaly (J. squamata) native to China and the slopes of the Eastern Himalayas is also undemanding to soil fertility, drought and frost resistant. In ornamental gardening, its varieties with wonderful silvery needles, wide-spreading 'Blue Swede' and 'Blue Carpet', similar to it, but with golden growths 'Holger', growing in the form of a luxurious fountain 'Meyeri' and cushion-shaped 'Blue Star' , which is often planted on an alpine hill.
Juniper scaly ‘Blue Carpet’ 
Juniperus scaly ‘Holger’ 
Juniper horizontalis ‘Blue Chip’
Cannot be found as a groundcover or for decorating retaining walls. the best plant than another North American species - horizontal juniper (J.horizontalis). The most popular varieties are blue 'Blue Chip', 'Grey Pearl' and 'Glacier', blue-green 'Wiltonii', green 'Prince of Wales' and 'Green Carpet', golden 'Limeglow' and 'Golden Carpet'. The wonderful varieties 'Andorra Compact' and 'Winter Blue' take on a fantastic purple color in autumn. There is also a variegated variety ‘Andorra Comp. Variegata'.
Victoria Roy
landscape designer
specially for the Internet portal
garden center "Your Garden"
Junipers are coniferous evergreens that have reached the peak of popularity among ornamental conifers in recent years. They are used to decorate almost every second site. And those gardeners who have not yet planted this shrub of the Cypress family would like to have it, but are afraid of difficulties in care. The most beautiful of the species, the blue junipers, are especially alarming. It is believed that caring for them is more difficult than for the green "brothers", because they are more capricious and whimsical.
In fact, decorative junipers have green, light green, yellow, silver, variegated and blue needles. The variety of shapes and colors does not make this shrub more difficult to care for. The truth is that blue is the most beautiful of the shades, which makes the plant look noble and majestic and serves as the best decoration of the site. Of course, as with other plants, before growing blue juniper, you need to learn all about the most popular varieties of this species and the features of their cultivation.
The reason for the popularity of blue junipers
Why are juniper plants with silver bluish needles considered the most popular?
- Firstly, they look original and can decorate any landscape composition. High decorativeness distinguishes these varieties from all the other numerous members of the family.
- Secondly, blue juniper retains its decorative qualities all year round. On white snow, the branches, as if covered with a bluish haze, look no worse than among the summer greenery or the autumn riot of colors.
- Thirdly, blue junipers have the widest scope. They can be used almost unlimitedly in the garden design of both private estates and public parks.
Use of blue junipers in design:
Blue juniper in landscape design
- landscaping of slopes;
- hedges;
- curb landings;
- solitary plantings on the lawn;
- decoration of rock gardens and rockeries;
- landing along the banks of artificial reservoirs.
If you decide to plant blue juniper on the site, start by choosing the right kind. To do this, you need to find out which of these plants belong to the blue juniper species.
Popular varieties
Among the blue junipers there are short and tall, sprawling and with a compact crown, ground cover and upright.
The versatility of the size and growth of various types of blue junipers allows these plants to be used for various purposes, including cultivation in room conditions, in containers or in greenhouses.
Juniper Cossack
If junipers with a blue crown are the most popular of the representatives of this type of conifer, then the Cossack juniper is the most popular of all. It includes almost twenty species. The best:
- Tamariscifolia;
- Rockery Jam;
- Kupressifolia;
- Blue Danub.
Tamariscifolia
The shrub grows in height by a meter, the diameter of the crown is two meters. The branches are at an angle of 40 degrees. The needles are prickly, blue with a slight silvering. This shrub seems to be covered at any time of the year. light touch sparkling frost.
Juniper Cossack Tamariscifolia
It looks best on rocky surfaces, it is also used in rockeries, in combination with light stones.
Rockery Jam
This variety is dwarf. It grows to a maximum height of up to half a meter, but the diameter of the crown can reach five meters, since the plant is creeping. A very beautiful spreading bush as if adjacent to the ground. The needles are blue-turquoise, very pleasing to the eye.
Juniper Cossack Rockery Jam
This "beauty" is used for solitary landings on lawns, where it is simply irresistible.
Cupressifolia
Also from undersized, it grows up to 0.6 m, but in sprawling it is far inferior to the Rockery Jam variety. The crown diameter is compact - up to one and a half meters.
Juniper Cossack Kupressifolia
The needles are blue-green, in the depths of the branches it casts blue. In addition to decorative properties, it has utilitarian properties - the shrub gives numerous, large, fragrant berries. Grown for rock gardens, decoration of artificial reservoirs and in a curb planting.
Blue Danub
An evergreen lush shrub that grows up to 60 cm in height and can reach up to three meters in crown diameter. The ends of the lateral branches are raised. Gray-blue pointed needles are long, up to 6 mm. The needles may have a bluish coating.
All representatives of the Blue Danub variety have a specific smell that repels moths very well.
The berries are black-brown, covered with a bluish bloom, up to 12 mm long, ripen annually, but are poisonous. The shrub belongs to the creeping ones, and is able to withstand frosts of -40 ° C.
Juniper Cossack Blue Danub
It is ideal to grow it in a sunny area. The variety can be used as a background for flower beds and paths, a background for shrub arrangements with flowers and decoratively colored foliage.
juniper scaly
Varieties of this species with blue needles are most often used as groundbloods. They can become a spectacular backdrop for decorative leafy and flowering shrubs and tall perennial flowers.
The most beautiful representatives:
- Blue Chip;
- Blue Carpet;
- Blue Star.
Blue Chip
A low-growing creeping variety that grows up to 30 cm in height, with a crown width of an adult bush of two meters. The main shoots grow horizontally, and the side shoots are directed almost at a right angle upwards. The needles have a bluish-steel color. The shrub looks very exotic. Can be used in rockeries and rocky gardens.
Juniper scaly Blue Chip
Blue Carpet
This blue juniper variant is perfect for decorating alpine slides. The height reaches a maximum of 30 cm, diameter - 1.5 meters. The crown is blue-gray, close to a flat shape.
Juniper scaly Blue Carpet
The variety is distinguished by an amazing undemanding to climate conditions, but if the plant does not get sunlight, the needles become faded and uninteresting.
Blue Star
One of the most beloved and valuable blue varieties. They appreciate it for its delicate silver-blue needles and for slow growth. The domed dense crown does not rise above 60 cm. It grows by only 5 cm in a year. The bush can stretch one and a half meters wide, but this will also take a lot of time.
Juniper scaly Blue Star
The plant prefers soils with sufficient moisture, nutritious and located in sunny areas.
This variety is very good to grow in a container, as well as in balcony mini-compositions, for decorating loggias, terraces and roofs.
Juniper horizontal
This species is also called prostrate juniper. It includes more than 60 varieties, which are distinguished by needle-shaped needles, long creeping branches and numerous short creeping vegetative shoots. These shrubs are used to decorate plots, balconies, flower beds, rock gardens, in the form of low borders, on terraces and balconies as a container and pot plant.
To the best blue varieties horizontal view relate:
- Wiltoni;
- Blue Forest;
- Bar Harbor;
- Ice Blue.
Wiltoni
Creeping creeping shrub that grows up to 20 cm in height and has a bush diameter of two meters. They brought him back in 1914. And for more than a hundred years, its green-blue branches parallel to the ground have been growing, forming a dense soil cover and intertwining with each other in the form of a bizarre star.
Juniper horizontalis Wiltoni
Blue Forest
A variety characterized by dense and compact needles and short skeletal branches. side branches structural, dense, adjacent, upright. The color is intense blue. Shrub grows up to half a meter. Especially with skillful shaping, it gives a very beautiful graceful outline of the crown.
Juniper horizontal Blue Forest
Bar Harbor
Creeping variety with dense needles. Since the branches are very open, and the side shoots also spread to the sides, it can be used as a ground cover. It grows about 30 cm. After the first frost, the blue-gray needles acquire magenta tint. Used in the design of public parks, squares, botanical gardens.
Juniper horizontalis Bar Harbor
ice blue
A very undersized creeping variety that grows to a height of no more than 10-15 cm. The width acquires about two meters with age, but this may take decades, because the bush grows slowly. Lateral shoots are arranged almost vertically, with dense silver-blue needles, which become plum-colored by winter.
Juniper horizontal Ice Blue
Blue juniper care
After listing and describing the most attractive blue juniper varieties, you need to know how to care for them.
If you decide to plant one or more blue junipers in your area, you should start by purchasing good quality seedlings.
No one says that this can be done exclusively in the nursery, but only there you can be guaranteed to purchase a seedling of the desired variety with a closed root system.
Before the purchase.
- Carefully inspect the seedling.
- The bush must be healthy.
- Branches intact.
- There are no wounds on the trunk.
- Lateral branches do not break off.
- The color of the needles is uniform, corresponds to the variety.
- Roots in a pot or with a clod of soil.
Preparation and landing
It is best to plant an evergreen acquisition in a sunny area. In the shade they can grow, but they will surely lose their bright and original coloring needles, and the branches will become loose and sparse.
If several tall shrubs are planted, it is better to make the distance between them about one and a half meters. Exception - hedge, in which a denser fit is allowed, with a distance of half a meter.
Preparing a hole for juniper
The depth of the hole should be from 40 to 60 cm, depending on the variety. A few days before the proposed planting, a 20 cm hole is filled with a mixture of sand, peat and turf (proportion 1:2:1). A drainage layer of the same volume is poured under the soil layer, which consists of coarse sand or broken bricks.
Plants carefully, spreading their roots, are planted in a planting hole on a layer of soil and covered with peat. After planting - abundant single watering.
cultivation
Features of caring for blue junipers are in the features of their root system. It is horizontal and located close to the soil surface, so it is worth loosening the trunk circles no deeper than five centimeters. The most convenient option is not to loosen at all, but.
All junipers tolerate excess moisture with difficulty. Therefore, watering must be controlled. In summer, it is enough to water the plants once a month. If the weather is very hot and dry, you can spray the crown with a spray bottle. In autumn and winter, you can do without watering at all.
Juniper pruning is shown sanitary - once a year, in the spring. There are varieties that require formative pruning, but most blue junipers are not.
In spring, junipers need to be covered from sunburn, and for the winter they should be insulated from frost and pressure from snow cover, which can break off branches.
- general description
- Common types
- common juniper
- Virginia
- Cossack
- Chinese
- coastal
- rocky
- Scaly
- Application
- Landing
- plant care
The genus of junipers belongs to the cypress family and includes more than 60 species of evergreen shrubs and trees. The name comes from the Celtic word Jeneprus, which means "thorny". These plants are distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere from the subpolar zones to the subtropics. These rocks have existed on the planet for 50 million years. Their peculiarity is the attachment of varieties to certain ecosystems in a rather limited space. The habitats of junipers are discontinuous.
general description
In height, even tree forms rarely reach 12 m, and the diameter of the trunks is about 20 cm. The roots are taproot, they penetrate the soil to a great depth. Shrub forms are from 1 to 10 m in length. There are also dwarf creeping species that do not exceed 40–70 cm. The bark of young plants is reddish in color, becoming dark brown with age. Shoots branched and flexible. The crowns are sprawling, dense, ovoid, pyramidal or irregular in shape. Leaves up to 2 cm long, bluish-green, needle-shaped or scaly, collected in whorls. The kidneys are naked. Most junipers are dioecious, but there are also monoecious species. Male specimens have spikelets consisting of paired stamens. The carpels of the female spikelets have 1–2 ovules each, and they themselves are collected in whorls in pairs. Juniper fruits are round cones of a bluish, gray or black hue. Their shell consists of densely closed thin scales. Inside the berries are several seeds separated by partitions.
Junipers are long-lived plants. Many of them reach 400-600 years of age. Almost all breeds prefer sandy, moderately nutritious, slightly alkaline soils, but can exist on poor podzolic, stony soils and limestones. Most species are photophilous. These evergreens, like all conifers, emit phytoncides that are detrimental to various pathogenic microflora. When rubbed in the hands, the needles emit a sharp resinous odor. In places where juniper grows, the air is cleaner and healthier.
AT natural environment the plant reproduces by seeds. In culture, cuttings or grafting are often used.
Common types
In their natural environment, junipers grow in mixed forests. In North America, Asia, as well as the Mediterranean, tall shrubs make up small, rare pure forests. Creeping species are located in foothill areas, on rocky slopes.
common juniper
It has the widest distribution area. It is found throughout Europe, in Siberia, North America. Other names of the plant: juniper, veres. It is a dioecious shrub about 4–7 m in height, can rise up to 10–12 m. The trunks are thin, about 10–20 cm in diameter, the bark is fibrous, reddish-brown. The crown is dense, cone-shaped or rounded.
The needles are trihedral, about 1.5–2 cm long, dark green in color, covered with a translucent wax coating. Common juniper cones are dark blue, 0.6–0.9 mm in size, with a characteristic resinous aroma.
Veres grows very slowly: it stretches 15–20 cm per year. The life span of a shrub is more than 200 years.
Virginia
This is a monoecious tree species native to North America. Individual specimens reach 1.5 m in diameter, rising up to 30 m. In young plants, the bark has a gray-green color, darkening with time. The branches form a narrow ovoid crown. It expands with age. The leaves of the Verginsky juniper resemble cypress in structure: short, scaly, silver-green in color, with the lower part tightly adjacent to the branches. The berries are the same as those of the common species: bluish-blue and fragrant.
Based on this species, decorative varieties were bred for landscaping streets and parks. In the temperate climate of the northern latitudes, virginian juniper is planted instead of cypresses.
Cossack
Miniature undersized shrub, with a crown height of not more than 1.5 m. The shoots are flexible, covered with small-needle light green needles. Cossack juniper the best way suitable for landscape design. Its advantages include unpretentiousness to care, natural conditions. Withstands sharp drops temperature, strong winds and drought. Deep root system allows him to do without watering for a long time, extracting moisture from distant soil layers. The growth of a shrub of the Cossack species is no more than 3–4 cm per year, which allows you not to worry about cutting for a long time. Many creeping varieties have been bred from it.
A significant drawback of this juniper is poisonousness: needles, berries and bark contain potent alkaloids, so it must be handled with care.
Chinese
Tall dense shrubs up to 20 m in length, found on Far East. Some varieties are monoecious. The crown is wide, sprawling, irregularly shaped. The needles are short, soft, in the form of dense scales about 3 mm in length. The reddish bark of the Chinese juniper tends to flake off and fall off in thin strips.
coastal
Dwarf shrub no higher than 40–70 cm with needle needles about 1 cm long. Reddish bark. Shoots are long and creeping. Coastal species refers to slow-growing breeds. In a year, the growth of bushes increases by only 2–3 cm. The fruits are blue cone berries with a pale bluish bloom. This juniper is valued for its decorative qualities. Light green needles have grayish-blue stripes, giving the crown a beautiful sheen.
rocky
Plants with an original narrow diamond-shaped crown resembling tall columns. The growth of this juniper can be up to 12 m. The trunks are straight and thin. Lateral shoots are directed almost vertically upwards. Needles in the form of thin short scales of bluish-gray, dark green and olive color. Individual needles are needle-shaped and long. This species is popular with landscape designers.
Scaly
Low shrub up to 1.5 m tall. The bark is grey-brown. The crown is dark green, dense. Needles in the form of wide lanceolate scales, very dense and hard, about 1 cm in length. The obsolete leaves do not leave the branches for a long time, giving them a withered appearance. The berries are shiny, almost black.
Application
Thanks to decorative qualities it is actively used for landscaping urban landscapes, gardens, parks. Extensive plantings are especially suitable for areas with polluted and dusty air. The needles of plants clean the city atmosphere well.
A powerful branched root system makes these rocks useful for strengthening the slopes of ravines. The richness of varieties allows the implementation of exquisite design solutions. Juniper bushes create a magnificent ensemble with other garden plants, are used as hedges. Bonsai varieties grow well indoors.
Almost all parts of the plant are useful.
Juniper wood has a high density: about 640 kg/cu.m. dried. The sapwood of the logs is narrow, yellowish in color. The core occupies most of the massif, grayish or light brown, more solid. Annual rings are expressed in greenish or red-brown dark pattern. Resin passages are not visible, core rays are invisible. The texture of the wood is very beautiful, the layers of fibers have a striped or wavy structure with contrasting lines. This timber lends itself well to manual and mechanical processing, has high performance properties, does not crack for a long time, does not swell from moisture, is resistant to fungal infection .
Juniper wood is used to make barrels for canned fruit, kvass mugs and kitchen utensils. Brackets, pencils, hooks for hanging meat hams are machined from it. Butter, milk and other perishable products are kept fresh for a long time in juniper containers.
Wood resin is used in industry to make paints, varnishes and turpentine. needles gives essential oil used in aromatherapy and as an antiseptic for colds.
Juniper berries in most species, with rare exceptions, are edible. They contain many vitamins, anthocyanins, antioxidants, sugars, beneficial bitterness. They are used as a spice for meat, vegetable dishes, marinades, giving the products an unusual flavor. Juniper fruit jam is not only a dessert, but also a remedy. Syrup, tea and decoction are used to get rid of lung diseases, genitourinary infections. Active substances berries relieve symptoms of fever, rheumatism and arthritis, have anti-inflammatory effects, remove toxins from the body, and support the cardiovascular system. There is a lot of inulin in the juice of berries, which is necessary for patients with diabetes mellitus.
Landing
Germination of juniper from seeds requires 1 to 3 years, for planting on adjoining territories and in gardens this method is of little use. If desired, you can sow seedlings in containers with soil, set them in a lit place and water the substrate regularly. Planting shoots in open ground produced in the fourth year. This should be done in the spring, in April or May. In autumn, seedlings can suffer from wind and frost. Fruiting of independently germinated shrubs is possible in 7-10 years.
Buying seedlings in nurseries or cuttings allows you to quickly acquire beautiful useful plants.
It is advisable to choose a sunny place for juniper, especially for decorative varieties. The lack of light is well tolerated only common view. Any soil will do. When planting, you need to calculate the distance between seedlings in advance: for large wide species, it should be at least 1.5 m, compact ones can be placed every 50–70 cm.
The size of the pits for juniper is twice the volume of the roots. The bottom is ¼ filled with drainage: small stones or crushed bricks, a layer of a mixture of peat, soil and nitroammophosphorus fertilizer is laid on top. Within 2 weeks, you need to give the holes rest. After placing the seedlings, the pits are covered with soil. The neck of the root should be at the level of the surface. Each tree is watered and then the surrounding soil is mulched with sawdust.
Juniper cuttings are harvested in the spring, cutting off annual shoots 15–20 cm long. They are added dropwise in a peat-sand mixture and left in dark place before rooting, moisturizing regularly. From the container, after 1-2 years, the cuttings are transplanted into open ground.
Creeping varieties are propagated by layering. To do this, a small incision is made on the selected shoot and pinned to the ground, lightly sprinkling it. On the next year the shoot takes root, it is separated and planted in the chosen place.
plant care
These plants are easy to care for. In the early years and during the dry period, it is recommended to pour 10 liters of water under the roots every 3 weeks. Before this, you need to loosen the soil around. Fertilizers must be applied to poor soil before each watering; additional feeding is required once a season. In the hot time in the evenings, it is useful to spray the needles.
Large varieties can be pruned regularly, giving the branches the desired shape. But there are no fast-growing species among junipers, so you should not cut off large volumes of the crown. Usually, shearing is resorted to when creating hedges, and single shrubs are left with their natural look.
Prevention of juniper diseases is carried out in spring and autumn, spraying the shoots with a solution of Bordeaux mixture.
Hello, my name is Valeria, I am engaged in garden and park design. One of my favorite plants is juniper. This plant is very plastic, it is easy to shape it, and the variety of species and varieties allows you to find a texture for any garden. Today I will talk about the types and varieties of this plant.
This plant can be both an elegant shrub and a spreading tree. The most popular varieties can be divided into several categories:
- Types are frost-resistant;
- Cossack junipers;
- Chinese junipers;
- Horizontal;
- Scaly.
Junipers are frost-resistant
Here, too, there are several categories. I'll tell you about the most common ones.
Junipers ordinary
It can be both trees and shrubs. Their shape can be varied, height - within 12 meters. The needles are lanceolate and narrow, up to 14 mm long. Cones are black, have a bluish bloom. Resistant to both poor ecology and any frost. Grows even on the poorest soils. About a hundred varieties are known, but the most popular are:
- Suecica. Shrubs up to 4 meters high. The bushes are dense, have the shape of a column. The shoots are vertical, the needles are light. Grows best in places with good lighting;
- Green carpet. Shrubs are low, reaching only half a meter in height and one and a half in width. Often used as ground cover plants. Suitable for rocky gardens and slopes. The needles are small and soft;
- Hibernika. A columnar tree, up to three and a half meters high. Suitable for all soils. It is best to tie the trees before winter, otherwise they may break under the snow. Do not forget to shelter from the sun in the spring;
- Gold Horse. Tree reaching a height of about 4 meters. It has a conical shape. The crown can reach a meter in width. The peculiarity is that its shoots can change their color throughout the year. Differs in frost resistance and survival on any soils. The only thing it does not tolerate is too wet soil. In addition, it is better to plant it in well-lit areas.
rock junipers
They are also cold hardy. They can grow up to 10 meters in height. Suitable for hedges and coniferous compositions. Ideal for hot areas, they tolerate any adverse factors well. The two most popular varieties are:
- blue arrow. These are trees up to 5 meters high. The shoots are hard, the needles are blue, not prickly. Differs in unpretentiousness and resistance to frosts. Likes light and well-drained soil;
- Skyrocket. It has the shape of a column, the crown is dense. Height up to 8 meters, the crown has a width of about a meter. He loves soils where water does not stagnate, and loamy. Also loves light. Resistant to frost, drought and wind, but it is better to tie its branches before winter.
Virginia
This is the most unpretentious of hardy junipers. Resistant to decay, grows on the slopes of mountains and on the banks of rivers. It tolerates frost, drought, and even shade. The most popular are the following varieties:
- blue clouds. Quite a small shrub. The needles are small and gray, the branches are long;
- Glauca. It has the shape of a column, height up to 5 meters. The needles are silvery, the branches are thick;
- Ganaertii. Quite a tall tree with dark needles;
- Burkii. It grows quickly, reaches 6 meters, the needles are not prickly, have a delicate greenish-blue color;
- Pendula. One of the highest representatives. Can reach 15 meters. Spreading tree, bluish needles;
- Gray Owl. Low (up to one and a half meters) shrub with a wide crown and hanging branches. The needles are gray-silver. Normally refers to pruning;
- Hetz. It grows equally fast both in height and in width. Suitable for large parks and gardens.
junipers
They are also hardy and have big variety colors and shapes. Most popular:
- Low and sprawling Pfitzeriana Aurea;
- Gold Star with golden scales. It grows more actively in width than in length;
- Hetzii. The needles are gray-blue;
- old gold. Known for the golden color of the needles. It grows slowly, has a miniature size;
- gold coast. Expands in width more actively than in height;
- Mint julep. Is different bright color needles and curved branches.
Cossack
They are also winter hardy. Usually creep on the ground. Suitable for strengthening slopes. They are not very demanding on soils, they tolerate droughts normally, but they love light. Grow in European forests and in Asia. There are many varieties and they are very different in appearance and sizes.
- Tamariscifolia. Height is only half a meter, actively growing in width. The needles change color with different amounts of light;
- Glauca. Also low and with a wide, cushion-shaped crown.
- Arcadia. Low bushes that grow up to 2.5 meters wide and cover large area. With age, it becomes like a carpet. The needles are soft, gently green.
Chinese
Grow throughout Asia. Suitable for creating bonsai and for small areas. They grow slowly, but sometimes reach 20 meters. Ideal for moist and fertile soils, but quite drought tolerant.
- Variegata. Pyramidal with a fairly wide crown.
Likes well-drained and moist soil, it is better to hide it from the sun in early spring; - Kuriwao Gold. The peculiarity is that the needles turn pale in the shade, so plant it in the sun. good for rocky garden and gardens with different types coniferous;
- Blue Alps. It has a dense crown and shoots hanging along the edges. It can reach 2 meters both in height and in width. Suitable for any soil, but he needs more light;
- Blaauw. He has asymmetric shoots. The width and height are the same - about one and a half meters. Light penumbra is comfortable for them. But the soil needs nutritious, the reaction is either neutral or slightly alkaline.
Horizontal
Native to North America. Used as ground cover plants.
- limeglow. Miniature creeping shrub: about 0.4 meters high and one and a half meters wide. The needles are bright yellow with golden. It can be used in a variety of gardens as an accent, but it does not tolerate heavy soils, and besides, it loves bright light on the site.
- Blue Forest is the smallest - about 30 cm high and one and a half meters wide. The crown is creeping, but the shoots are vertical, so it looks like a tiny forest. The color is blue, most expressive in the month of July;
- bluechip. A beautiful creeping shrub. Shoots are horizontal and spread into different sides. They have slightly raised ends. The color is silvery blue, but in winter it turns to lilac. Outwardly resembles a carpet;
- Andorra Variegata. Also a dwarf variety. The needles are bright green, but there are also lighter blotches. In winter, it turns purple-purple.
scaly
They are not too demanding either on the soil or on the air. Native to the Eastern Himalayas and China.
Here are the most popular of their varieties.
- Meyeri. The height of the shrub is about a meter. The shoots are arranged obliquely, their ends hang down. The needles are dense, needle-like and rather short. Its color is silvery blue. If you regularly cut this shrub, you get a beautiful, dense and openwork shape.
- blue star. It is a dwarf shrub and grows quite slowly. Its height is up to a meter, its width is up to 150 cm. It is best to plant on rocky hills, slopes and curbs.
- Blue Carpet. Refers to fast growing shrubs. The needles are quite prickly and silver-blue. The cones are dark blue in color and have a waxy coating. It is best to strengthen them with slopes and slopes.
Among the ancient Slavs, Juniper was a symbol of eternal life. The spicy smell of burning branches in the village was a sad sign. This meant that someone in the village was being escorted on the last journey, which would give eternal life.
Shamans used juniper smoke in ritual fumigations and rituals, giving the bush magical powers.
In Belarusian folklore, there was a legend about an evil spirit named "kaduk" living in the trunk of the Juniper. In this region, shrubs were bypassed.
At the same time, among other peoples, Juniper is a symbol of holiness, the abode of the gods.
In Christianity, Juniper has earned special mention. Many clergy still maintain the tradition of consecrating a juniper branch and hiding it behind an icon. It is believed that this measure will prevent the temple and icons from misfortune.
juniper names
AT different regions Russia in the old days, Juniper had many names.
In some parts it was called Veres, in others - Yalovets, Morzhukha, Bruzhevelnik.
The most common name "Juniper" according to one version comes from the phrase "between the firs". Often this shrub is found precisely as an undergrowth in spruce thickets.
According to another version, the name comes from the ancient Slavic word "mozhzha", which means a knot. A quick glance at the winding trunks of old trees reveals a resemblance to real rope knots.
WHAT JUNIPER LOOKS LIKE
Juniper is a shrub or small tree with a thin trunk and a pointed top up to 5-6 meters high.
The needles of the plant, 1–2 cm long, are very hard and prickly.
There are female and male specimens. In male representatives, the crown is denser, narrow and pointed.
The bark is gray-brown in color and fibrous in texture.
The trunk of a tree is often curved in bizarre patterns with branches smoothly turning into verticals.
Juniper grows very slowly, so centennial specimens barely reach large sizes. Even the oldest representatives of the shrub have a height of about 5 meters and a trunk thickness of 10 - 15 cm.
The maximum age of the Juniper is 200 years, although there are representatives much older.
Where does juniper grow
The shrub is considered a relic plant, a witness of ancient times. After all, Juniper has been growing on Earth for more than 50 million years.
The shrub has 71 species. 20 of them grow in our country.
Juniper is widely distributed in the Urals, the Caucasus, Primorye and Siberia. Various types of shrubs are found in Southeast Asia, America and the Mediterranean regions.
In the forests of Russia, the most common species is the common juniper.
The shrub grows in the undergrowth and on the site of clearings. Cultivated in gardens and parks. Separate types plants are found in the mountains at the most inaccessible points.
When Juniper Blooms
Juniper flowers in May, producing yellow flowers on male plants and green on female plants.
Fruiting begins in autumn. On the bushes you can find green and black-purple berries at the same time. Juniper fruits ripen only in the second year and are inedible for humans.
Medicinal properties of juniper
Juniper berries contain copper, iron, manganese, aluminum, a huge amount of vitamins and essential oils.
A decoction of the fruits of Veres successfully fights problems with the urinary system, so it was used in the treatment of edema, inflammation, and even in the removal of kidney stones.
A decoction of berries improves bile secretion and enhances intestinal motility.
It is also used in the treatment of the respiratory tract. This remedy is an excellent expectorant medicine and dilutes phlegm.
The needles contain a huge amount of phytoncides that kill harmful bacteria.
A pillow with juniper sawdust can cure headache and a slight runny nose, relieve stress and calm nervous excitement.
In modern medicine, diuretics, diaphoretics, painkillers and other drugs are made from Juniper.
Application of Juniper
Green Juniper berries are used to make natural golden yellow dyes. Black - for the manufacture of brown and black paint.
Juniper fruits are not edible and are used as one of the ingredients in the food industry in the manufacture of sweets, muffins, fruit drinks, gingerbread.
Dried juniper is an excellent material for carpenters and carvers. The wood is perfectly dried and will never crack. Without large resin passages, the wood is perfectly stained and polished. Possessing high density, this material allows fine threading.
A valuable resin is extracted from Juniper, which is used to make high-quality natural white lacquer.
Veres wood is widely used for making pencils.
Contraindications
Medicines and preparations, which include Juniper, are contraindicated in people with kidney problems.
Juniper is an inedible berry. Special care should be taken with Cossack Juniper, as it is poisonous and can cause vomiting, kidney damage and nervous system. In some cases, death is possible.
Juniper - interesting facts
Juniper thickets are formed near coal seams. This property is used by geologists during the search for coal deposits. Thus, the Moscow region coal basin was opened.
Before salting mushrooms in the old days, the peasants treated the barrels with boiling water with a juniper broom, killing putrefactive microbes.
The oldest Juniper grows in the Crimea. According to one version, its age is about 400 years. According to another - 2 thousand years. Determining the exact age of a living Juniper is extremely difficult.
In cabinets made from Juniper, moths never start.
Photos used in the material: sereja.serjio2015 , Zekkadrb , angruzinov , valerius66 , Fl1983 (Yandex.Fotki)
