Creeping juniperis the leader among coniferous shrubs planted as cover plants, on slopes, rockeries and in various bedding compositions. Low requirements and a large selection ofcreeping juniper varietiesmakecreeping junipergrowing in the garden more and more popular. See how to plant creeping junipers, which varieties to choose for your garden, how to care for them, how to performpruning creeping juniperand also whether it is possible to independentlyreproduce creeping junipergrowing in our garden.
Creeping Juniper
Creeping Juniper(Juniperus horizontalis) has long, layering shoots that adapt to a variety of surfaces to form dense carpets that can grow up to 30 cm in height. The fruits of creeping juniper are dark blue cones with a diameter of 7-9 mm, covered with a blue coating.
Creeping juniper - varieties
Creeping juniperis one of the most cultivated juniper species. Its varieties allow the shrub to fit in most of the rebate. Creeping junipers are great plants for planting on slopes, in rock gardens and moors. Low varieties are great ground cover plants. Meet the most popular and noteworthycreeping juniper varieties !
Creeping juniper 'Alpina'- is one of the oldest creeping juniper varieties, no less specific and original. Reaches 1-2 m in diameter after 10 years of cultivation.One-year increments of this juniper variety are arranged vertically and grow up to 60 cm in height. In the following years, they slowly put themselves under their own weight. The needles take a bluish-green color.
Creeping juniper 'Blue Chip'- is a variety of creeping juniper with medium growth, growing up to 0.2 m in height and 1 m after 10 years. , 5 m wide. Shoots crawl along the ground and have protruding ends. 'Blue Chip' is perfect as a ground cover plant when planted in the amount of 2-3 pcs. Per square meter.
Creeping Juniper 'Blue Chip'
Creeping Juniper 'Golden Carpet'- is a variety with quite slow growth, reaching after 10 years only 0.1 m in height with 1.2 m in diameter. Interesting, golden-yellow color of this variety of juniper attracts attention. As a ground cover, it should be planted at a rate of 2-3 per m².
Creeping juniper 'Plumosa'- is a variety of creeping juniper with a spreading habit and raised shoots that spread out from the center of the bush and create a characteristic depression.After 10 years, this variety reaches 0.4 m in height and 1.2 m in width. Young growths are green and in winter they change color to plum.
Creeping juniper 'Variegata'- this is an interesting variety with a flat habit and medium size. After 10 years, this juniper grows up to 0.3 meters high and 2 meters wide. Shoots are green in color with irregular, creamy-white discoloration.
Creeping juniper 'Wiltonii'- is the most frequently chosen variety of creeping juniper, intended for planting as a ground cover plant. It grows up to 3 meters wide by 0.1 meters in height, having an interesting blue-green color.
Creeping juniper 'Andorra Compact'
Apart from thevarieties of creeping junipermentioned here, the creeping habit may also have varieties of other juniper species. Examples are the Chinese juniper 'Expansa Variegata' (a variety with green-blue scales with cream spots, growing to only 30 cm tall) and the common juniper 'Green Carpet' (a variety with light green needles, growing to only 10 cm in height and as much as 1, 5 m wide).As you can see, the term creeping juniper can also be used to cover creeping varieties of species other than Juniperus horizontalis.
Creeping juniper - cultivation
Growing creeping juniperis best done in a sunny position and in dry, well-drained soil. This plant prefers slightly acidic to alkaline soil conditions. Creeping juniper perfectly adapts even to harsh environmental conditions. It is not afraid of drought or air pollution, it also tolerates low temperatures well, requiring no cover for the winter. Inthe cultivation of creeping juniperit is worth using pine bark mulch, which has a positive effect on the development of the shrub, maintaining the correct soil moisture and providing favorable humus.
Like most ornamental shrubs, creeping junipers will respond well to the spring dose of fertilizer. Special multi-component mineral fertilizers for conifers can be used for this purpose.
Note!Creeping juniper should not be planted on the lawn, because its creeping shoots can be quickly choked by the lawn.For this reason, in the first period after planting, it is advisable to regularly remove weeds from under the juniper, and preferably cover the area around it with mulching non-woven fabric and bark to prevent weeds from growing.
Creeping juniper - pruning
Contrary to the prevailing stereotypesthe juniper that prevails pruningendures quite well. It is worth knowing that periodicpruning of creeping juniperpromotes the thickening of the bush and improves its habit. Of course, it should be taken into account that most varieties of creeping juniper are slow-growing, so it is worth not to cut hard until the plant reaches the desired size. Interestinglyvariety of creeping juniper 'Variegata'stains more effectively if periodically pruned! It should also be remembered to remove damaged, frozen and disease-infected branches in late spring, i.e. to perform the so-called sanitary cutting.
Creeping juniper - reproduction
When deciding onreproducing creeping juniperwe have to be patient, because the whole process may turn out to be quite laborious and lengthy.Remember to provide seedlings with appropriate conditions, not allowing the substrate to dry out.
In the case ofcreeping juniper, reproductionis best done from shoot cuttings collected in the second half of summer. For this purpose, at the end of August, we collect shoot cuttings from young growths of creeping juniper. The seedling should be a maximum of 15 cm in length. Remove the needles from its lower part and immerse it in a rooting accelerator, and then plant it in the inspection, ensuring the temperature is 18 ° C. The substrate for planting should be a mixture of sand and peat. Prepared seedlings should be covered with foil to maintain a constant moisture content of the substrate. The following year in Aprilseedlings of creeping junipertransplant into pots filled with good quality substrate.Much easier than reproducing creeping juniper on your own, it may turn out to order good quality cuttings in recommended by us garden shop.
MSc Eng. Joanna Białowąs
