QA

Quick Answer: How To Care For A Juniper Tree

How to Take Care of Junipers. Plant juniper shrubs in a location with full sun or light shade. When they get too much shade, the branches spread apart in an effort to let more sunlight in, and the damage to their shape can’t be repaired. Junipers grow in any type of soil as long as it is well-drained.

How often do you water juniper trees?

Water newly planted junipers twice a week when there is no rainfall for the first two months. Junipers need weekly watering for the first summer to develop an extensive root system. After the first summer, most junipers can rely on natural rainfall and fog for moisture.

How do you care for a potted juniper tree?

Junipers growing in pots appreciate a moist but well-drained soil. Constantly soggy soil can and often will cause root rot or other harmful or deadly plant diseases. Therefore, I suggest using a quality potting soil or potting mix, or a 50/50 combination thereof and a container with a drainage hole(s).

Why are my juniper trees turning brown?

There are many reasons a juniper might turn brown. Fungal tip blights, cankers, mechanical damage, and salt injury are some of the most common causes. Several juniper samples with tip blight were submitted to the Plant Disease Clinic this spring. Phomopsis and Kabatina tip blights are two common diseases of juniper.

How do you keep junipers healthy?

Junipers need air flow to avoid fungal disorders, so cleaning up around the shrubs and pruning out any dead wood is important. It is also important to keep branches dry during warmer weather, so avoid overhead water or watering too often during the summer.

Can junipers live in pots?

Junipers are a tough and tolerant evergreen for containers. They adapt quite easily to a variety of conditions but require full sun and well drained soil. Most junipers also take to pruning well. The variety of shapes and color available as well as excellent growth form make junipers a popular selection for containers.

Can you keep juniper in pots?

Junipers (Juniperis spp.) are slow-growing evergreens that thrive in containers with conservative pruning. Trees in containers have several advantages. They fit in small spaces and can decorate areas, such as patios, where trees can’t be planted.

Can junipers grow indoors?

Most bonsai varieties are happiest outdoors. But juniper bonsai trees can tolerate indoor growing if they’re kept in the right conditions. Providing adequate light, temperature, and humidity levels will be your biggest challenge.

How do you save a Browning juniper?

Treat scales with horticultural oil; pour 1 to 2 ounces of horticultural oil into 1 gallon of water and spray the juniper. Coat the leaves and branches thoroughly. The treatment should be done every two weeks while the scale insects are present but should not be done more than four times.

How do you know when a juniper is dying?

However, you can test them by bending the smaller branches. If the branches are flexible and full of sap, they’re still alive. If they’re brittle and dry, they’re dead and won’t come back. Some of the “brown” junipers that are still alive will put out new growth in the spring, but it will be from the tips of branches.

Can a brown evergreen come back?

Can a Brown Evergreen Ever Come Back? The answer is yes, depending on the cause. When an evergreen turns brown, it can be both surprising and disheartening. The good news is that a brown evergreen can come back green as soon as the following year, although it may need a little work to help it through the process.

What are juniper trees good for?

Juniper is used for digestion problems including upset stomach, intestinal gas (flatulence), heartburn, bloating, and loss of appetite, as well as gastrointestinal (GI) infections and intestinal worms. It is also used for urinary tract infections (UTIs) and kidney and bladder stones.

Can you trim juniper trees?

While overgrown juniper pruning has its limits, it is possible to trim your plant down to a more manageable shape. One good place to start is the removal of any dead or leafless branches – these can be cut off at the trunk. You can also remove any branches that are overlapping or sticking out too far.

How do you trim a juniper tree?

The most effective method is to cut down the tree with a chain saw and use a portable tree shredder to process the wood into chips to be used as mulch. Stump grinding equipment is available for rent online or from local home and garden centers.

How long do juniper trees live?

Junipers grow very slowly. A juniper standing only five feet tall may be 50 years old. Junipers typically live from 350 to 700 years, with some even passing the millennium mark. Despite their longevity, junipers rarely exceed 30 feet in height or three feet in diameter.

How do you fertilize junipers?

Fertilize the juniper annually in early spring with a complete, slow-release fertilizer with a formulation such as 12-4-8 or 16-4-8. Spread the fertilizer evenly around the juniper at a rate of 1/2 pound per 100 square feet just before it rains or water it thoroughly after applying the fertilizer.

Do junipers turn brown in winter?

Junipers (Juniperus spp.) are low-maintenance evergreens and maintain their color throughout the cold winter months in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 through 10. However, a winter occurrence of browning branches usually indicates either Kabatina tip blight or an injury called winter desiccation.