Where does juniper grow? Description, diversity of species

Coniferous evergreen bushes and trees, of which there are more than 70 species, belong to the cypress family. Juniper is a plant well known in our country. It is widely used in landscape design.

Many summer residents and owners of country houses would like to see on their sites these original plantations that have exquisite beauty. True, not everyone knows how juniper grows, what conditions are necessary for it. In this article, we will try to answer many questions concerning this culture.

Title History

There are two versions regarding the origin of the name of this plant. Some researchers are sure that it appeared from the phrase "spruce forest", since in the north the plant prefers sites between spruce plantings. The second version says that it went from the Old Russian word "milk", meaning "knot". Perhaps this hypothesis also has the right to exist, because juniper differs knots branches and trunk.

Where does juniper grow?

Representatives of this genus are quite widespread - from the Arctic to the mountainous subtropical regions. The exception is only Juniperus procera (East African). This species is distributed on the African continent up to 18 ° south latitude.

As a rule, most junipers have a small distribution area. Usually these are certain mountain systems and countries. Widely distributed, perhaps, only juniper is ordinary. Where does juniper tree grow, which in height can reach fifteen meters? These trees form light forests characteristic of the Mediterranean, Central Asia, the south of North America and the arid regions of Mexico. True, they do not occupy large areas.

If you are interested in where the juniper of smaller species grows, we hasten to inform you that it can be found in the undergrowth or in the third tier in light coniferous and deciduous forests. When they are destroyed, pure thickets are formed. The shortest, creeping species can be seen on stony slopes and rocks, at the upper boundary of the forest.

Description

Juniper can be like a shrub growing up to three meters, and a tree with a height of up to fifteen meters. Much less frequently there are specimens up to thirty meters high. In more severe climatic conditions, the plant can take a stlanic form. In male plants, the crown is dense and columnar, in female plants the denser and oval forms.

Juniper has two kinds of needles: the young plants are covered with green and acicular, very sharp, the length of which is about one and a half centimeters. The branches of adult trees are covered with both acicular and scaly pine needles.

Bloom

Juniper blooms in May. Male yellow cones have an elongated or spherical shape, and female (green) congregations form small groups. After fertilization, in the first year, female flowers resemble solid brownish balls, and in the second year they acquire the appearance of berries, filled with juice. By the autumn they become dark blue or black-violet, much less often - red-brown, with a light gray bloom.

You already know where junipers grow - in the undergrowth and light deciduous forests (or form independent thickets on the sands). And now we will discuss what conditions are most comfortable for him.

He is not at all picky about the soil, since powerful roots can extract nutrients and water from the depths of the poorest soils. It is a drought-resistant, shade-tolerant and frost-resistant plant that can withstand frost to -40 ° C. The juniper grows slowly, but it is longevity - scientists claim that some specimens live up to 3000 years.

Landing

Many summer residents are interested in how to plant juniper correctly. First of all, it is necessary to prepare a sunny place for the seedling. Depending on the type of plant, the soil requirements may vary, but in general this is not the most important factor.

Fill the landing pit with a mixture of sand, peat and turf. On wet soils, planting will require drainage. In this case, it is necessary to increase the depth of the pit. At the bottom pour a broken brick or rubble. When planting, the root collar should not be buried.

Watering

In arid and dry weather, junipers require a rare, but abundant watering, so that the water soaks the soil well. In addition, in the heat it is necessary to sprinkle (sprinkle). This is better done in the evening.

Preparing for winter

Juniper, having an erect crown shape, is tied with a rope in late autumn to exclude the deformation of branches under the weight of snow. The other species do not need special preparation for winter.

Juniper: species and varieties. Gold Coast

This is a low shrub whose shoots are located horizontally. Needles are decorative - golden-yellow, darkening towards winter. The bush likes illuminated places, in the shade development slows down. The crown is dense and sprawling. To soil and moisture is not exacting. In a year the growth of the plant is from five to fifteen centimeters.

Mint Julep

This species has a spreading crown, located at an angle to the soil of approximately 45 °. The name of the coniferous shrub came from mint julep, which in English means "sweet minty cocktail". For the first time the juniper Mint Julep was bred in the nursery of the city of Saratoga Springs (USA).

The advantage of this variety is that it easily tolerates droughts and severe frosts. The plant can be planted singly or by a group, creating an original coniferous composition. Juniper Juniper has a medium size and undulating crown. By ten years it can reach three meters in width. Another advantage is a very pleasant minty scent of pine needles. In the US, this variety is considered industrial: it feels great in the city, playing the role of hedges.

Juniperus Blue (scaly)

This is a fairly large group. It includes more than two dozen species. They refer to ornamental plants, which are ideal for decorating the landscape. In this article we will introduce you the most common of them.

Blue Carpet

An unpretentious, fast growing shrub. Its height does not exceed one and a half meters, the branches differ in barbed silver-blue needles. The crown is wide and flat. Fruits (pine cones) are dark blue with a whitish bloom. Relatively fast growth allows the use of culture as a ground cover plant to strengthen the slopes and hills.

Shrubs love the sun, are resistant to gas pollution and smoke, well tolerate pruning.

Blue Star

The name of this plant is translated as "blue star". Decorative juniper Blue Star - shrub with acicular, scaly pine needles of beautiful silvery-blue hue. The crown is dense, semicircular. Blue Star grows very slowly - by the age of ten, he is gaining no more than forty centimeters in length and in diameter.

The bush is drought-resistant, frost-hardy, undemanding to soils, grows on all dry and well drained, and also on poor soils.

Blue Arrow

Rocky juniper Blue Arrow its name (translated as "blue arrow") was due to the interesting shape of the crown. Narrow, columnar, it really looks like an arrow. Shoots are tight, tightly pressed to the trunk, vertically growing, a year grow by fifteen centimeters. At the age of ten the plant reaches two and a half meters in height with a width of 0.7 meters.

Needles are scaly, soft, bright blue. Fruits - shishkoyagoda bluish-blue color. The advantage of the variety is the low growing lower branches (almost at the base of the trunk).

Juniperus horizontal. Andorra Variegata

Dwarf shrub with divergent rays from the center of shoots, with slightly raised ends. The main advantage of the species is bright green needles with cream-white dots, and in winter it strikes a purple-violet hue. An adult plant with a height of not more than a meter and a half likes sunny areas, it is not exacting to soils.

Blue Chip

Another juniper is blue. Shrub in height from thirty centimeters to two meters. It is a creeping plant. This grade belongs to the best in its category. Sweeping shoots on the ground spread out in different directions, covering the earth with a dense carpet.

Needles silvery-blue, small. In winter it is struck by a gentle lilac shade.

Juniper Cossacks. Arcadia

The bushes are medium in size (2.5 m), the crown is crooked. Needles are light green, soft. It develops well in the lighted areas, but can also tolerate a light penumbra. Withstands frosts down to -40 ^o C. First it grows in the form of a pillow, but gradually turns into a magnificent carpet, occupying all the larger areas.

Glauca

The gray-blue needles of these small bushes (1.2 m) in winter will surprise you with a rare bronze hue. Against the background of a dense cap of pine needles, the brown cones with a wax coating look very harmonious. The variety is unpretentious and frost-hardy.

Juniper is Chinese. Blaauw

This is a very beautiful plant with a pillow-shaped crown. He loves solar areas, although he develops well in the light penumbra. Soils are most suitable for drained, light, nutritious, moderately moistened and with a neutral reaction. The height of the plant is 1.2 meters.

Variegata

This is a taller plant (2.1 m). It has a distinctive feature - light yellow spots, scattered along the blue-green crown of a pyramidal shape. Prefers well drained, moist, fresh soils. Can not tolerate stagnant overmoistening. Early spring requires shelter from the sun.

Kuriwao Gold

An adult bush height of 2.2 meters is clearly visible from a distance, and all thanks to bright golden young shoots, which contrast with the dark green needles of older branches. This gives the impression of airiness and lightness. The crown is wide, sometimes asymmetrical, round. Looks great in single landings. No less beautiful are such bushes in mixed groups.

Juniper trees are common. Gold Cone

The plant grows to four meters in height. In summer, during active growth, young shoots are painted in a bright yellow color, which turns yellow-green by autumn, and in winter the plant becomes bronze. The variety does not tolerate stagnant overmoistening of the soil.

It is not demanding for soils, although it is better not to allow them to become densified. The first three years the bush needs good care: watering, shelter from the spring sun is necessary.

Green Carpet

A small creeping plant (1.5 m) with a soft, non-spiny needles of light green color. Excellent for planting on slopes, in stony gardens.

Hibernika

Quite tall bushes (3.1 m) with soft needles of a bluish-green color. The variety is frost-resistant, it feels comfortable in the lighted areas. For the winter, branches should be tied up to prevent them from breaking.