Chinese juniper

Sun

Full sun; tolerates light shade, but growth becomes looser and foliage colour may fade.

Water

Moderate while establishing; low once established. Avoid persistently wet roots.

Soil

Well-drained sandy, loamy or stony soil, from slightly acidic to alkaline. Tolerates clay where drainage is good.

Height

40-60 ft (12-18 m) for the species; many garden cultivars remain much smaller.

Spread

15-25 ft (4.5-7.6 m) for the species; cultivar widths vary widely.

Foliage

Evergreen. Green to blue-green, with prickly juvenile needles and small, overlapping adult scales. Cultivars may have blue, grey-green or gold foliage; female plants can carry blue-black, berry-like cones.

Growth

Slow to moderate, depending on cultivar and growing conditions.

Care needed

Low

• Deer resistant
• Drought tolerant
• Cold hardy
• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   7 ft (2 m)

2. After 1 year

   8 ft (2.5 m)

3. After 2 years

   10 ft (3 m)

4. After 3 years

   11 ft (3.5 m)

5. After 5 years

   15 ft (4.5 m)

About 26 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Mildly toxic: may upset a stomach

Growth rate

Slow

• Water deeply during dry spells for the first two growing seasons, allowing the soil surface to dry between waterings.
• Plant with the root flare at soil level; choose another site if water stands after rain.
• Apply 2-3 in (5-8 cm) of mulch, keeping it clear of the trunk and lower branches.
• Feed only if growth is weak and a soil test indicates a deficiency; avoid heavy nitrogen applications.
• Give branches room to reach their mature width rather than relying on repeated shearing.

Pruning. Lightly shorten leafy shoots in late spring or early summer, preserving the plant's natural outline. Do not cut back into bare old wood, which rarely produces new growth; remove dead or diseased branches when found.

Early spring

Check for winter damage and remove dead or broken branches during dry weather.

Spring

Plant in workable, well-drained soil and water thoroughly.

Late spring

Inspect new shoots for tip blight and orange rust growths; prune affected material promptly.

Early summer

Lightly trim leafy growth if shaping is needed, without exposing bare inner branches.

Summer

Water young plants during prolonged dry weather and check dusty foliage for spider mites.

Autumn

Refresh mulch and water young plants if the soil is dry before winter.

• Use an upright cultivar as a year-round focal point beside a path or entrance, allowing space for its mature width.
• Plant spreading cultivars among rocks and gravel with drought-tolerant perennials for contrasting texture.
• Use columnar forms for an informal evergreen screen in a sunny, well-drained position.
• Combine sculptural specimens with rocks, pines and restrained planting in Japanese- or Chinese-inspired gardens.

Garden styles it suits: Architectural minimal, Japanese, Chinese scholar garden, Dry gravel garden, Low-maintenance and Winter interest.

Plant it with: Lavender, Catmint, Russian sage, Yarrow, Stonecrop and Blue fescue.

Wildlife: Dense branches provide shelter and nesting cover for birds. Birds may eat the berry-like cones on female plants. Pollen is wind-carried rather than a useful nectar source and can trigger hay fever.

• Juniper tip blight causes shoot tips to brown and die. Prune affected shoots in dry weather, disinfect tools between cuts, improve airflow and avoid overhead watering.
• Juniper rusts can produce swollen growths with orange, gelatinous projections in wet spring weather. Remove affected twigs where practical; these fungi may also infect nearby apples, crabapples or related plants.
• Spider mites cause fine stippling, dull foliage and sometimes webbing during hot, dry weather. Rinse foliage thoroughly and use an appropriate labelled treatment only if infestation persists.
• Poor drainage can cause root rot and widespread browning. Reduce watering and correct drainage; replace badly affected plants rather than replanting into the same wet conditions.

Do not eat the foliage or berry-like cones or use them as a substitute for culinary juniper. Ingestion may cause stomach upset in people, cats and dogs, although serious poisoning is not commonly reported. Toxicity to horses is poorly documented; keep prunings out of grazing areas. Foliage and sap can irritate sensitive skin.

• Common juniper (Juniperus communis)

  Common juniper retains stiff needle-like leaves in groups of three, each with a broad pale stripe. Mature Chinese juniper usually has substantial areas of overlapping scale-like foliage as well as juvenile needles.

• Lawson cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana)

  Lawson cypress typically has flattened, fan-like foliage sprays and small, round woody cones. Chinese juniper has less flattened branchlets and fleshy, berry-like cones.

The name Juniperus is the classical Latin name for juniper, and chinensis means 'from China'.

Propagation. Take semi-ripe cuttings in late summer; rooting can be slow and success varies by cultivar. Some upright cultivars are grafted. Seed requires prolonged pretreatment and produces variable plants, so it does not reliably preserve cultivar characteristics.

Accepted botanical name

Juniperus chinensis

Native range

China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Inner Mongolia, Japan, Khabarovsk, Korea, Kuril Is., Manchuria, Myanmar, Primorye and Sakhalin.

Measured

Soil pH 4.5 to 7.5. Average height 2000 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0) and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.