Proper care of juniper: tips and recommendations.

Watering

Juniper roots are very sensitive to over-watering. They are actively watered only in the first month after planting, when adaptation to a new place occurs. The soil should not be allowed to dry out sharply and deeply, but excessive dampness at the roots is also dangerous – it can provoke fungal diseases or rot.

It is enough to water the seedlings once every 7 – 10 days, with a volume of water of about 15 liters. Adult plants need attention only during the summer drought. However, even in hot weather, they are watered no more than 2-3 times per season.

To delay the evaporation of moisture, flat stones are placed between the juniper bushes and the trunk circle is mulched with peat, rotted compost or pine needles.

The plant does not like dry air, so it is periodically sprinkled – watered from a hose with a spray nozzle. The procedure is especially important for young, recently planted bushes. Sprinkling is recommended at least once a week early in the morning or in the evening. It is important that the sun does not bake the wet needles, otherwise they will get burnt.

Feeding

Junipers do not require frequent and abundant feeding, especially organic. But to stimulate rapid growth, you can add peat, humus and turf mixed in equal parts directly into the hole when planting. In addition, 30 – 40 g of nitroammophoska are mixed into the soil. This concludes the list of fertilizers for plants in the first year of planting.

Junipers of all ages are not recommended to use nitrogen-rich fertilizers, and manure or chicken manure are contraindicated, as they severely burn the roots.

Starting from the second year, 50 g / m² of nitroammofoska or superphosphate are added to the plant’s trunk circle in early spring. On poor soils, summer fertilizers are also used – mineral fertilizers for conifers with an optimally selected complex of useful elements. The appearance of the juniper usually suggests what it needs – for example, young shoots turn yellow with a lack of magnesium. At least 1 month should pass between fertilizers.

Some gardeners use growth stimulants, but they only benefit seedlings. Frequent fertilizing is generally harmful to adult junipers. If the plant looks healthy and strong, complex fertilizers are applied once every 3 years.

Mulching

Junipers 1-2 years old have many problems with weeds, which draw nutrients from the soil and support pathogenic microflora. Therefore, the trunk circle should be regularly weeded and mulched. The best covering options are:

• pine bark;
• wood chips;
• walnut or pine nut shells;
• peat;
• pine cones and needles;
• agrofibre.

For effective protection against weeds, the mulch layer should be 5 – 7 cm. It is undesirable to use sawdust and hay, as they can bring pests to the plant.

Pruning

Juniper grows slowly and is naturally spectacular, picturesque crown. Therefore, formative pruning is only needed when creating a topiary, a hedge, or to limit growth beyond the boundaries of the allotted area. One-year-old shoots tolerate pruning well, but “aged” branches do not completely restore the crown. This must be taken into account when working with topiary forms. The most popular among landscape designers is the Japanese niwaki haircut.

Sanitary pruning is carried out in the spring and early autumn. Fallen needles remaining inside the bushes, branches that rub against each other, dry, diseased and damaged ones are removed. The central part of adult, well-grown conifers is thinned out to reduce humidity and improve air exchange in the root zone.

After pruning, the plant experiences stress, which can be relieved by spraying with growth stimulants. It is not necessary to treat the cuts, the conifer will heal them itself. Pruning is carried out in the second year after planting – not earlier.

Juniper essential oil can cause strong allergic reactions, and the resin leaves stains that are difficult to remove. Therefore, branches should be trimmed in thick canvas gloves and special work clothes.

Preparing for winter

Juniper is a frost-resistant crop, but first-year seedlings, diseased or weakened plants need shelter. To protect the roots, mulch the trunk circle using the materials listed above or dry leaves. You can lay two layers of spruce branches on top. In early spring, when the snow melts, the mulch should be removed, otherwise the root collar will rot.

For columnar junipers, winter snowfalls are especially dangerous – the branches spread out to the sides under the weight of precipitation and break off. You can keep the crown without damage if you wrap it in a spiral with a wide tape and do not pull it tightly. At the end of winter, conifers face another problem – sunburn. The root system in the frozen ground is not yet active, so the needles are not saturated with moisture and are defenseless against ultraviolet radiation. Dehydrated ends of the branches seem to fry in the sun, and we notice the consequences of this only in May.

To protect against burns, junipers in November are covered with any light-blocking material – agrofabric, kraft paper or burlap. It is important to preserve the air gap so that the plants do not rot during thaws. The covering material is stretched over the frame, moving it away from the coniferous cover if possible. If positive temperatures persist for a long time in winter, the structure is ventilated from time to time.

Replanting

When redeveloping a site, juniper sometimes has to look for a new place. Young plants tolerate transplantation relatively easily, especially if fertile and light soil is prepared for them. It is best to carry out the procedure in mid-spring or early autumn. Adult plants do not like changing places and take root with difficulty. It is recommended to transplant them in early spring before the start of active vegetation. A year before the procedure, the trunk circle is dug around the border so that the root system becomes more compact.

The transplant hole should be 2-3 times wider than the juniper root ball. The depth is selected taking into account drainage. For effective drainage, broken brick, crushed stone or river pebbles are placed on the bottom of the hole, covered with sand on top, and then a layer of fertile soil is made. The entire “pie” is abundantly watered.

The juniper dug up with a lump of soil is treated with a root growth stimulator and placed in the prepared hole. It is important to maintain the previous orientation of the plant to the cardinal points and the same planting depth. The root ball with roots is placed in the center of the hole and covered with nutritious soil mixture. Its approximate composition:

• 50% turf or leaf soil;
• 25% sand;
• 25% peat.

We water the area around the trunk and mulch. Water should not get on the plant, so that fungus does not develop. For additional protection, the soil and crown are treated with fungicides, as well as a universal insect repellent.

Junipers taken from the wild take root in a new place with greater difficulty than cultivated species.

Protection from diseases and pests

The main enemy of conifers is fungal diseases. They arise due to insufficient lighting, too heavy clay soil, or systematic stagnation of water at the roots. Most diseases are latent at the initial stages and appear when the plant is already seriously affected.

The main signs of fungus:

• needles turn yellow en masse and fall off out of season;
• mycelium on branches, formation of fruiting bodies;
• bark dries, turns brown and cracks.

For prevention, regular treatments with fungicides are carried out. It is especially important to spray juniper in warm, humid weather and in late autumn, before covering. If the infection does occur, all affected branches are removed to a healthy area and the collected material is burned.

In early spring, conifers are treated with broad-spectrum insecticides, such as “Aktellik”, for preventive purposes. Due to the rich essential oils, juniper has few pests, but some insects attack it. If necessary, a second insecticide treatment is carried out in the summer.

Juniper is one of the best coniferous representatives for the garden, combining unpretentiousness with decorativeness. Having chosen the right place for this plant and properly protected from diseases, you can enjoy its beauty and healing aroma for many years.