Chinese juniper

Synonyms: Juniperus barbadensis Thunb., Juniperus cabiancae Vis., Juniperus cernua Roxb., Juniperus chinensis f. aurea-pendula Beissn., Juniperus chinensis var. foemina Lavallée, uniperus chinensis var. gaussenii (W.C.Cheng) Silba, Juniperus chinensis var. keteleeri Beissn., Juniperus chinensis var. leeana Lavallée, Juniperus chinensis var. mascula Lavallée, Juniperus chinensis var. pendula Franch., Juniperus dimorpha Roxb., Juniperus flagelliformis Loudon, Juniperus fortunei Carrière, Juniperus gaussenii W.C.Cheng, Juniperus jacobii Beissn., Juniperus keteleeri (Beissn.) Prop.-Giesel., Juniperus reevesiana Endl., Juniperus shepherdii Beissn., Juniperus sheppardii (H.J.Veitch) Melle, Juniperus sinensis J.F.Gmel., Juniperus sphaerica Lindl., Juniperus sphaerica var. pendula (Franch.) Melle, Juniperus sphaerica var. sheppardii H.J.Veitch, Juniperus struthiacea Knight, Juniperus thunbergii Hook. & Arn., Juniperus virginica Thunb., Sabina cabiancae (Vis.) Antoine, Sabina chinensis (L.) Antoine, Sabina dimorpha (Roxb.) Antoine, Sabina gaussenii (W.C. Cheng) W.C. Cheng & W.T. Wang, Sabina sphaerica (Lindl.) Antoine, Sabina struthiacea (Knight) Antoine.

Chinese juniper (Juniperus chinensis L.) – a species of the genus Juniper (Juniperus) in the family Cupressaceae. It was first described in 1573 by Carl Linnaeus in his “Species Plantarum, Tomus II.” In cultivation in Europe since 1804. In Ukraine it first appeared in 1850 in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden. Now cultivated in Odesa and Kyiv.

In the wild it grows in northeastern Asia; occurs in China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea and in the southeast of Russia. Found on rocky and calcareous soils.

It is a dioecious or monoecious evergreen coniferous tree with a pyramidal crown, less often a prostrate, ground-hugging shrub. Reaches 2025 m in height. Bark peeling, grayish-red. Young shoots dark green, indistinctly 4-angled, up to 1 mm thick.

Leaves mainly scale-like, opposite, in pairs, 1.5–3 mm long and up to 1 mm wide, oblong-ovate in shape, apex acuminate, inrolled, tightly pressed to the shoots with an elliptical gland. On young plants and on lower shoots the leaves are needle-like, in whorls of 3, up to 12 mm long, with 2 stomatal bands of white color and a green midrib, prickly.

Microstrobili are yellow. Fruits nearly globose or elongated, dark blue to almost black, 4–10 mm in diameter. Scales 4–8. Seeds 2–3 ovate-flattened, blunt, in number 1–5, shiny, brown, ripen in the 2nd year.

Cultivars: Classification by G. Krüssmann (according to Wikipedia):

Upright form, medium vigor, broad to keg-shaped.

• Foliage bluish-green to gray: 'Ames', f. glauca, 'Jowa', 'Maney', 'Obelisk'.
• Foliage green: 'Ketelerii'.
• Foliage yellow: 'Aurea'.

Narrow keg-shaped to columnar form.

• Foliage bluish-green to gray: 'Columnaris', 'Columnaris glauca', 'Mountbatten', 'Olympia', 'Monarch', 'Pyramidalis', 'Stricta', 'Shoosmith'.
• Foliage green: 'Fairview', 'Ketelerii', 'Neaborensis'.

Shrub. Usually low-growing.

• Foliage bluish-green to gray: 'Blaauw', 'Globosa Cinerea', 'Pendula'.
• Foliage green: 'Japonica', 'Kaizuka', 'Plumosa'.
• Foliage variegated white, or yellow: 'Plumosa Alboriegata', 'Plumosa Aurea', 'Plumosa Tremonia', 'Sulphar Spray'.

Spreading form, without a distinct leader shoot.

• Fast-growing with bluish-green foliage: 'Blue Mountain', 'Hill's Blue', 'Mathot', 'Pfitzeriana Glauca', 'Hetzii'.
• Fast-growing with green foliage: 'Kosteriana', 'Pfitzeriana', 'Mint-Julep'.
• Fast-growing with yellow foliage: 'Pfitzeriana Aurea'.
• Slow-growing with bluish-green foliage: 'Blue Cloud', 'Moriana', var. sargentii 'Glauca'.
• Slow-growing with yellow foliage: 'Gold Coast', 'Old Gold'.
• Slow-growing with green foliage: 'Armstrongii', 'Pfitzeriana Compacta', var. sargentii.

Round form: 'Echiniformis'.

Hardiness: 4-9 (-30°C)

Site/exposure: drought-tolerant, sun-loving, prefers deep moist soil and humid air, resistant to smoke and air pollution.

Planting: recommended spacing between plants 0.5 or 1.2–2 m. Planting depth – 70 cm. Drainage if necessary: crushed brick or sand, layer 15–20 cm. Soil mix: topsoil, peat and sand in ratio 1:2:1. Transplants poorly even with a root ball.

Care: in spring (April–May) apply nitroammophoska 30–40 g/m2. In a dry summer it is recommended to water the plant 2–3 times per season and carry out evening misting once a week. Mulch with peat or sawdust to a depth of 5–8 cm.

Pruning: tolerates heavy pruning and clipping well, retains shape for a long time.

Diseases: rust (Arcerid (50 g per 10 L of water) spray 4 times at 10-day intervals), shutte, biatorrellaceous and nectriaceous canker, alternariosis, pear rust fungus.

Pests: aphids (Fitoverm (2 g per 1 L of water) spray 2 times at 10–14 day intervals), leaf-mining moth (Decis (2.5 g per 10 L) spray 2 times at 10–14 day intervals), spider mite (Karate (50 g per 10 L)), scale insects (carbophos (70 g per 10 L of water)), galls, sawfly, shoot moth, pine looper.

Propagation: propagated by seeds and cuttings. 65% of winter cuttings root without treatment. Easily propagated by summer and winter cuttings and by layering. Seeds require stratification.

Uses: used in solitary and group plantings, for creating alleys. Some forms can be used for small plots and rock gardens. In Japan it is often grown in container culture. Can be grown in bonsai style.