Juniper hedge: photos and tips

A juniper hedge will decorate the plot of a country house for many years. This species of conifers is long-lived, they live for hundreds of years. A living fence will enliven the landscape, clean the air of dust and harmful substances. The needles emit phytoncides, so the air next to these plants becomes healing.

Pros and cons of juniper hedges

The neighborhood of fruit trees and juniper hedges is not always successful. Ephedra can cause rust on apple trees, pears, mountain ash, hawthorn. It is called basidiomycetes. The fact that the juniper is infected with this pathogen can be understood by the orange growths on the branches. You can see them in the spring.

Save the situation preventive measures. They are carried out in the orchard and included in the work plan for the care of hedges. The conifer does not grow very quickly. It takes more than one year to wait until a living fence closes the site from neighbors. This can be attributed to the shortcomings of the juniper hedge. Difficulties arise during cultivation. Varietal varieties at a young age often burn in the sun.

You can talk about the merits of juniper hedges for a long time. Grown with skill, it will be not only beautiful, but also functional:

• as an external fence will protect the territory from prying eyes;
• it can be used for zoning a personal plot;
• will be an excellent background for ornamental shrubs, flower beds, lawns;
• decorate the winter garden with bright needles;
• will have a phytotherapeutic effect, filling the air with phytoncides and a pleasant aroma of pine needles.

The shape of the fence is limited only by the imagination of the owner. By choosing a certain variety, you can play with color. The needles are gray, golden yellow, light green, dark green. Juniper tolerates shearing well, so the fence can be given a strict shape or left uncut. The undoubted advantages of the conifer include durability, unpretentiousness, frost resistance.

Which juniper is best for hedges

It is definitely not worth bringing seedlings from the forest. It harms the forest. The decorativeness of the forest juniper hedge leaves much to be desired. Planting material should be purchased at the nursery. Expensive, but you can choose a conifer of a suitable variety that meets all the necessary requirements:

• young;
• medium size, with a good root system;
• adapted to the local climate.

Some varieties of common juniper are suitable for hedges in the shady part of the garden. This species grows best in those areas where it is light, but there is no midday sun. Coniferous shrub Meyer is one of the representatives of this species.

It has a wide columnar crown, silver-green needles. It grows quite slowly. The height of the tree at the age of 10 is 3 m, with a crown diameter of 60 cm. The crown of the Meyer juniper looks fluffy due to several tops.

Suetsika is another representative of the common juniper. A hedge from this conifer grows slowly. By the age of 10, it does not exceed 2,5 m. The width of the crown at this age is 80 cm. It is dense, columnar, and there are no problems when pruning. This variety is hardy and grows best in full sun. In the shade, the crown loses its decorative effect, becomes loose, spreading.

For hedges in light penumbra and in the sun, types of juniper Virginsky and Rocky are suitable. The advantages of these varieties include the fact that formative pruning does not inhibit the growth of shoots. These conifers are undemanding to the composition of the soil, frost and drought resistant.

Many gardeners, laying a hedge in the garden, prefer the Skyrocket variety. He has a muted gray-blue color of the needles. It is quite soft and grows fast. The frost resistance of the variety is average. Loves light, but can grow in light partial shade. Crown features:

• wide conical shape;
• diameter at 10 years – 1 m, maximum – 1,5 m;
• the height of a tree at 10 years old is 2 m, the maximum is 5 m.

The slow-growing species of Blue Arrow (Blue Arrow) with a columnar, very narrow, dense crown is also popular. For a year, the growth does not exceed 15 cm. This is a variety of rocky varieties of juniper, which is used to create hedges.

By the age of 10, a tree is formed from a seedling 2-2,5 m tall, with a diameter of about 0,7 m. The maximum growth of Blue Arrow juniper is 10 m. The needles are hard, blue-blue, scaly. Shoots grow often, vertically.

The crown retains its decorative effect for many years, the lower branches do not die off for a long time, they grow close to the ground. Ephedra is not afraid of frost, the danger is snow. Heavy snowfall can break conifer branches.

In hedges, the frost-resistant Keteleri variety is used. This is Chinese juniper. The needles are greenish-blue, the shape of the crown is narrow, columnar. Growth is moderate. Statistics by years are shown in the table.

How to plant a juniper to create a hedge

It is better to buy seedlings in containers, aged 2 to 5 years. Each tree must be inspected for damage. Check shoots for flexibility. Look at the needles. The color must be uniform. The disadvantages of a seedling include:

• lack of young growth on the branches;
• brown needles;
• cracks in the trunk.

Seedlings are planted in a trench. It is pre-marked. Use pegs and twine. The depth and width of the ditch is commensurate with the size of the earthen coma. The recommended dimensions are 60 x 80 cm. You need to take care of drainage in advance. Get fine gravel and sand.

Any variety of juniper does not tolerate stagnant water. Drainage should be filled with a layer of 10-15 cm. The soil for filling the soil should be taken from the top layer. For every 2 parts of garden soil add:

• sand – 1 part;
• peat – 2 parts;
• humus – 2 parts;
• fertilizer “Kemira Universal” – 150 g;
• nitrophoska fertilizer – 300 g.

The interval between seedlings depends on the variety. When marking the landing sites, the shape and size of the crown of an adult juniper tree (bush) are taken into account:

• 1,5-2 m – for sprawling;
• 0,6-0,7 m – for conical.

To form a solid hedge, seedlings are planted in 2 lines, placing them in a checkerboard pattern.

Features care juniper hedge

The needles of young trees can burn in the bright sun, so the first year after planting, the conifers are shaded from direct sunlight. Use burlap or some kind of rag. There is no need for frequent top dressing, fertilizers are applied under the hedge 1 time. In the spring, before watering, nitroammophoska is scattered at 30-40 g / m².

Adult conifers, if it rains, do not need watering. Young junipers in the system are watered with settled water. The soil underneath should be moderately moist. To preserve moisture, the ground around the hedge is covered with mulch (marble chips, bark).

Mulch has other functions as well. It prevents the growth of weeds, the spread of infection and pests. Pruning is an important aspect of hedge care. The first time it is carried out 2 years after planting, sheared in the middle of spring. The crown is formed in the form of a pyramid, rectangle, square, trapezoid. The top during the first haircut can be shortened by 25%, the length of the side branches by 75%.

Before the onset of frost, young conifers are covered with spunbond, the soil is mulched. The branches of adult trees with a pyramidal crown are pulled with twine. This protects them from snow and fractures.

Juniper in a hedge can suffer from a fungal infection. For prevention, trees are sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate or the Medyan Extra fungicide. Sick conifers are treated with the drug “Fundazol”.

Conclusion

A juniper hedge is appropriate in a large garden and in a small cottage. A fence of conifers enlivens the landscape, decorates the plot all year round. Juniper creates a favorable microclimate, enriches the air with useful phytoncides.