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Juniper in autumn requires some attention. In order for the bush to please all year round with rich, juicy greenery and a pleasant aroma, it should be properly prepared for winter. If for some reason the plant turns yellow, does not take root, you should heed the advice of experienced gardeners. By following some simple guidelines, you can achieve good results.
When to plant juniper in autumn
Not everyone knows that autumn is a good time of the year for planting juniper. If the seedling has a powerful rhizome, then when planted before November, it has every chance to take root and successfully adapt to the low temperatures of winter. Caring for juniper in the fall and preparing for winter is an event that requires a serious approach.
Important! The end of winter is no reason to relax. A coniferous tree can also die in the spring, when the rooting process is completed: at this time, return frosts occur. The cause of the trouble may be a weak, diseased root or a violation of the earthy coma. It is worth noting that small specimens are recommended to start in the spring. Thus, before the winter frosts, they will be able to take root and withstand bad weather.
How to plant juniper in autumn
Before planting a juniper seedling in a new place, in the fall, a year before transplanting, the plant is deeply dug in: the diameter should be no less than the diameter of the crown. Next, the rhizome is pruned and the juniper seedling is given time to recover.
It is also necessary to know that adult plants are also unsuitable for transfer to a new place. Even when creating ideal conditions, a mature specimen will not tolerate stress. If, nevertheless, a transplant of an adult plant is inevitable, it is worth trying to plant a juniper in winter, when the root ball freezes enough. When performing such a procedure in February, you can count on the probability of survival of the seedling.
Site preparation
The structure of the soil does not play a decisive role. In the matter of land, juniper is undemanding, but when choosing a place, light and loose soil should be preferred. An exception may be clay soil – the seedling will not take root on it. Only the virgin juniper bush can evaluate the properties of clay.
If you scrupulously adhere to the rules, then the Central Asian and Cossack varieties take root best in alkaline soil. Siberian – loves sandy and sandy soil. For the rest, acidic soil is more acceptable.
In the spring or in the middle of autumn, a new place is selected for the plant. Juniper thrives well in sunny areas. At the same time, it is important that the light of the sun arrives during the day. If the seedling is placed in the shade, it will not be possible to form a beautiful shape from scarce branches. Moreover, the color of the plant will become pale, uninteresting. The dimensions of the recess for landing are twice as large as an earthen coma, they introduce a drainage layer consisting of broken bricks, pebbles and sand. The thickness of the layer varies within – 15 – 25 cm.
Seedling preparation
Before immersing the seedling in the ground, it should be treated with a growth stimulator. When planting in dry soil, the bush is pre-saturated in containers with water, protected from direct sunlight.
The pit is filled with water, the soil is thoroughly moistened. To prevent insect attacks, the juniper sapling is watered with special chemicals after planting. Such an action must be carried out repeatedly until the plant “gets sick” in a new place.
Step by Step Guide to Planting Junipers in the Fall
If you follow the recommendations of experienced gardeners and follow a step-by-step algorithm of actions when preparing juniper for winter, the growing process will not create difficulties. Correct organization of actions:
- In the prepared soil, the landing sites are marked. The interval between seedlings is maintained at 1 – 5 m. For varieties of dwarf species that do not tend to grow, the distance is reduced to 2 – 0 m.
- Pits are prepared, focusing on the root system. They should be twice the size of an earthen coma. The approximate dimensions of the hole for a three-year-old seedling are 50×50 cm.
- At the bottom of the pit, a drainage layer of broken brick and sand (15 – 20 cm) is introduced. Also pour in a mix of soil, turf, sand, peat.
- Before the autumn planting of juniper for the winter, it is recommended to add up to 300 g of a nutrient, nitroammophoska, to the hole. The drug is classified as universal, it is suitable for all types of garden plants.
- The pit is allowed to stand for 21 days. Thus, the soil will settle, and when planting a juniper seedling, the rhizome will not additionally suffer.
- A seedling is immersed in the hole, covered with earth, fertilizers are not applied.
When planting young and medium-sized seedlings in autumn before winter, it is necessary to control that their root necks are located on the same level with the ground surface. If the juniper is large, they should rise 5-10 cm above the ground.
After completing all the steps according to the technologies and a step-by-step description of planting a juniper in the fall, the plant is well watered, the surface is mulched.
Juniper care in autumn
There are no special requirements for the care of juniper in the fall. It has good endurance, survives low temperatures in winter and drought in the heat, but on condition that the root system is fully established. A transplanted plant needs watering, as a weakened root cannot always go deep into the bowels of the earth to recharge. It will be useful to irrigate the seedling.
How to water juniper in autumn
Only a year after a successful planting, juniper can not be watered in autumn and even in summer. If the heat is aggressive and dries out the soil, the plant is watered abundantly, but not more than once every 14 days.
How to prune juniper in autumn
Common juniper pruning in autumn is carried out if the plant is grown to decorate the site. Figuratively form or simply remove excess processes. It is also necessary to eliminate dry, broken, sluggish branches. The rules for cutting seedlings are universal for all conifers. The plant should be rooted, without signs of disease. For some varieties, it is impossible to form a crown.
Juniper pruning in autumn is not always carried out according to the scheme. The choice of form should match the type of landscape. Sometimes gardeners leave a natural crown.
How to feed
When planting juniper in the fall before winter, the plant should be saturated with fertilizers. Thus, before the cold weather, the fragile root system of the seedling is supported.
For fertilizer, humus that has stood in a pile for at least 1 years is used.
If humus was introduced into the soil during planting, the manipulation is not repeated for the next three years. The fact that there is an excess of nitrogen in the earth will be indicated by the yellow color of the needles, dry branches.
To make compost, the topsoil above the roots is dug up, watered and mulched.
How to care for juniper in winter
Juniper is resistant to low temperatures, so there is little work to care for the tree in winter – all the main preparatory activities are carried out in the fall, before the arrival of winter. To prevent snow drifts from breaking the crown, the bushes are tied. It is especially common to “crumble” juniper plants that have undergone formation.
Is it possible to prune juniper in winter
The best time to form a bush is spring and summer. If we are talking about the middle lane, then the second half of the summer for a haircut is already undesirable. Juniper may not have time to “get sick” before the onset of a cold winter.
Juniper pruning in the fall is carried out for sanitary purposes, to remove dry and damaged branches, without touching the living ones. Before proceeding with the procedure, you should make sure that the plant is healthy. In case of any doubt, the formation of the bush should be postponed until spring.
In winter, you can also use sharp garden shears, but only dry branches are cut, without affecting living fragments.
How to water juniper in winter
In winter, juniper is watered only if it grows at home, on the windowsill. The frequency of watering does not exceed two times a month. Coniferous culture likes to be irrigated every other day. Thus, dense, lush greenery is obtained.
Do I need to cover the juniper for the winter
The bush withstands low temperatures, but if the juniper has not reached three years, it must be covered for the winter in the fall. For some varieties, it is common to react negatively to temperature changes in spring. The fact that the juniper is not comfortable when changing minus to plus and vice versa will be indicated by the faded shade of the plant and the yellowish-brown color of the branches.
How to cover juniper for the winter
Juniper shelter for the winter is carried out at the end of autumn using any of the proposed methods:
- In regions that experience snowy winters, the easiest way to cover the root system is to use snow. After the first snowfall, the previously connected bush is insulated with a snowdrift. For these purposes, only freshly fallen precipitation is suitable. The procedure requires accuracy, as it is important not to damage the branches and trunk.
- Young non-voluminous shrubs are excellently insulated with pine spruce branches. Large ones are tied with needles, small ones are covered from above.
- In regions where snow falls is not stable, agrofiber or burlap is most often used to shelter juniper plants. The crown is wrapped in such a way that the bottom of the tree is open. How to properly organize the process of saving juniper in winter is well shown in the photos of sites and forums of gardeners on the Internet.Important! The film is not considered as an option for insulation, since under it the seedling can be banned or get sick.
- An interesting and effective way to insulate juniper is to install a reflective screen. Having placed it from the side of sunlight, they ensure that the rays heat the crown.
If the seedling was not planted permanently, even in late autumn it can be brought in for the winter in greenhouse conditions. Thus, it is easy to avoid additional care hassles. Particular attention should be paid to preparing juniper for winter in regions where temperatures drop to -30 oC.
Conclusion
Despite the unpretentiousness of the plant, juniper is planted especially often in the fall, because due to the high humidity of the air, it is the autumn period that is optimal for preserving the green crown. Subsequently, this will positively affect the presentability of the plant and provide it with good reproduction.
