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Junipers are popular among gardeners around the world. There are many types of this coniferous plant. One of them is the coastal juniper Envelope. Description, characteristics, types of conifer, features of agricultural technology will be presented below.
Description of coastal juniper
Coastal juniper (Juniperus conferta) is a representative of coniferous plants listed in the Red Book. These are low shrubs growing on the same plane. Varieties are considered capricious, so not all gardeners decide to grow these plants.
Juniper on the site or in the natural environment forms a prickly carpet, characterized by brightness. The coniferous plant belongs to the Cypress family, dioecious, can be propagated by seed, less often by layering and cuttings.
All types and varieties of coastal juniper, the description and photos of which will be of interest to novice gardeners, are frost-resistant. That is why the geography of cultivation has affected almost all regions of Our Country.
Coniferous plantings are especially beautiful at the beginning of summer, when young shoots grow on shrubs. This quality of the dwarf conifer is widely used by landscape designers who use plants to decorate lawns, park areas and private areas. Plants can be planted singly, used as ground cover plants to create alpine slides, rockeries, hedges. Since the plants are undersized, they can be grown for landscaping terraces, balconies, roofs, loggias.
Varieties of coastal juniper
Breeders have bred many new species of coastal juniper. In order not to make a mistake when choosing, you need to know the features of each of them.
The most common varieties:
- Slager;
- Golden Wings;
- Blue Pacific;
- Silver Mist;
- Emerald Sia.
Juniper coastal Schlager (Slager)
A feature of the creeping juniper Konferta Slager, according to the description and reviews of gardeners, is its height. At the age of 10, the height is no more than 20 cm, and the crown grows up to 1 m. The height of older plants is no more than 50-60 cm.
Branches are red-brown. Needles are gray-green or dark green. The length of the needles is 10-15 mm, the width is 1 mm, the tips are prickly. Cones are dark blue, rounded in shape with a clearly visible bloom of bluish color.
Juniper coastal Golden Wings (Golden Wings)
This is a variety of low conifer with creeping shoots, in which they are slightly raised at the very tips. Dimensions of an adult juniper Sweet Golden Wings: height – about 30 cm, and crown diameter – 1 m. The plant is decorative, it is distinguished by a two-tone paint of needles.
Especially bright shrubs are obtained if they have enough sunlight. In partial shade, they lose their decorative effect. Coastal juniper responds gratefully to fertile soil, well-moistened soil. Stagnation of water can lead to the death of the shrub.
One of the features of the Golden Wings coastal juniper variety is winter hardiness. The plant can be grown at a temperature of -35 degrees. But the bright sun at the end of winter and the beginning of spring can cause needle burns. Therefore, it is recommended to throw agrofiber on landings. Shelter is removed after thawing the soil in calm weather.
Juniper coastal Blue Pacific (Blue Pacific)
Blue Pacific coastal juniper (Juniperus conferta Blue Pacific), according to gardeners, grows slowly. The representative of the Cypress family is a creeping shrub. Its height is no more than 40 cm, the crown grows up to 1,8 m in diameter. This feature of the Blue Pacific juniper must be taken into account when planting and caring.
Shoots form a dense and dense crown. The needles are green-blue, looks great at any time of the year, quite prickly and fragrant. When planted in an open area, the modified leaves are bright, juicy, but partial shade and shade can reduce the decorative effect of juniper.
It is desirable to plant the shrub on slightly acidic, sandy, well-drained soils. The plant is drought-resistant, so you can plant coastal juniper in the city. But excess moisture can destroy the plant.
Like many junipers, the evergreen Blue Pacific is hardy, so it can be safely grown in risky farming areas, creating amazing compositions.
Coastal Juniper Silver Mist
This variety of coastal juniper is the result of the activities of Japanese breeders.
The plant is compact, with silvery or gray-blue needles. The Silver Mist variety will look especially beautiful on alpine slides, next to water bodies, as an addition to landscape compositions, as well as when decorating garden paths.
The height of an adult juniper of the coastal Silver Mist is about 20-50 cm. The crown grows to a width of 80-90 cm. Every year the plant grows by 7-10 cm in height, and in width – by 15-20 cm.
The skeletal branches of the conifer are of medium length, branching randomly. Shoots are arranged horizontally and spread along the soil, creating an asymmetric crown shape.
After flowering, fruits of a spherical shape, blue or green, appear.
Coastal juniper is undemanding to the soil, although its decorative effect is better on slightly acidic soils with moderate moisture. Prefers lighted places, then the color appears better and does not change at any time of the year.
The variety of evergreen juniper is frost-resistant, able to tolerate short-term drought.
Juniper is specially placed around administrative buildings, hospitals and schools, as it exudes phytoncides that can purify the air.
Juniper coastal Emerald Sea (Emerald Sea)
This variety of juniper is distinguished by a spreading crown, which is formed by long, creeping branches. An adult tree is never higher than 30 cm, but the crown is simply amazing – it grows up to 2,5 m in diameter.
Modified leaves (needles) are bluish-green, rather soft than prickly. In winter, the decorative effect is slightly lost, yellowing of the needles is observed. The plant is frost-resistant, can grow on almost all soils. But dense soil and stagnant moisture when growing plants of the Emerald Sia variety are not allowed.
Planting and caring for coastal juniper
It is advisable to plant all types of coastal juniper in well-lit places, and an openwork shade is also suitable. In these cases, the decorative effect of the needles is preserved.
Seedling and planting preparation
The best seedlings are grown in containers. Such plants quickly take root and start growing. Plants should have the color of the needles corresponding to the variety, a well-developed root system. It is not allowed to use seedlings with numerous damage to the branches and signs of rot on the roots.
Immediately before planting, the soil in containers is watered abundantly to make it easier to remove the plant along with a clod of earth.
The soil before planting all types of juniper is dug up, having previously added peat, sand, soddy soil in a ratio of 2: 1: 1.
Rules of landing
And now you need to figure out how to properly plant plants:
- Planting pits are located at a distance of at least 1,5-2 m, since in adult plants of almost all varieties, the crown diameter is quite large.
- To determine the size of the pit, you need to focus on the root system of the seedling: it should be 2 times larger. The depth of the seat is from 50 to 70 cm.
- The bottom of the pit is filled with drainage: broken red brick, coarse pebbles and sand. The drainage layer must be at least 20 cm.
- Place a seedling in the center, sprinkle with the prepared soil mixture. The root neck must remain above the surface!
- Immediately after planting, the seedling of the coastal conifer is watered so that water penetrates to the depth of the root system.
- On the second day, the soil is mulched to retain moisture.
Watering and top dressing
Young plants need regular and abundant watering only in the first 7 days after planting. In the future, the procedure is performed only if there is no rain for a long time in summer. But sprinkling is necessary for plants, since dry air can cause a change in the color of the needles.
As for top dressing, they use special fertilizers for conifers or nitroammophoska, Kemira-universal, which are applied in the spring.
Mulching and loosening
To preserve moisture, all juniper plantings must be mulched. Sawdust, wood chips up to 8 cm high can be added to the trunk circle. Loosening is also a mandatory procedure, but it is superficial, it is done after watering.
Trimming and shaping
Coastal juniper requires sanitary and formative pruning. The first of them is carried out to remove damaged and dry branches. As for the shaping haircut, it is performed in early spring before the juice begins to move. You can cut off only a third of last year’s growth. Sections are treated with a fungicide, then the plant is fed.
Preparation for winter
Despite the high frost resistance, plants still need protection. The trunk circle is sprinkled with peat, the layer of which should be at least 10 cm. Young bushes are covered with spruce branches.
Reproduction
New seedlings can be obtained:
- seeds;
- cuttings.
For seed propagation, only fresh seeds are used and immediately sown before winter. Planting material is tight ascending, requires scarification. Seeds are treated for 30 minutes with concentrated sulfuric acid. Seedlings appear the following year in the spring.
In early spring, short cuttings with lateral heels are cut and immediately rooted. This is best done in a greenhouse, as it is still cold in spring. Transplantation is carried out after a year, when a good root system is formed.
Diseases and pests
According to the description and reviews of gardeners, coastal juniper, including the Golden Wings variety, is resistant to many diseases.
But it is not always possible to avoid:
- fusarium and rust;
- drying of branches;
- alternariosis and necrosis of the cortex.
It is necessary to carry out preventive treatments or treatment with fungicides or products containing copper.
Of the pests, it is worth noting the possible invasion of the spider mite, aphids, mining juniper moths and scale insects.
For the prevention of plantings in spring and autumn, they are sprayed with insecticides.
Conclusion
Coastal juniper is able to decorate any garden, especially since the plants live a very long time. In addition, all parts of the shrub are useful, they can be used for the preparation of medicines.
