What plants are suitable for decorating any garden, while not requiring complex care? Unpretentious junipers! With their help, you can even realize complex design ideas, because juniper is a combination of elegant shapes, plasticity and bright color! One of the best varieties is Juniper Old Gold. Its golden foliage and flat crown adorn the garden throughout the year! We invite you to get acquainted with the features of growing this coniferous shrub.
Juniper Description
This variety was brought up by the famous breeder from Holland - Grotendorst, crossing Chinese and Cossack varieties. This happened back in the middle of the last century.
Juniper chinensis Old Gold is growing slowly and compactly - even after 10 years, its height does not exceed 60 cm. But in width it spreads a meter. Annual growth is about 6 cm in height and at least 15 cm in diameter. The visiting card of this shrub is its grace and undemanding care. And the appearance of this variety is extremely attractive. By the way, according to the botanical description of juniper chinensis Old Gold, this plant can clean the air of pathogenic bacteria and even rid the garden of insects. Under favorable conditions and proper care, juniper can decorate a site for hundreds of years!
Seedling Selection
When purchasing a juniper seedling, pay attention to its condition. Twigs and needles should not be overdried. In addition, in no case on a young plant should not be fungus and mold. Planting stock should be sold along with the earthen lump in which it grew.
Please note: plants grown for sale in the garden tolerate transportation and transplanting more easily than their forest "counterparts".
Choosing a place for planting juniper
Having decided to plant this ornamental plant on the site, pay special attention to choosing a place for it. Old Gold loves well-lit areas. Planting it in places with shading is not worth it, otherwise the juniper may lose its bright golden hue and indescribable charm. The special requirements of this shrub and soil. He prefers land with a neutral or slightly acid reaction.
Landing rules
In order for the plant to take root well, you need to plant it in accordance with certain rules. First of all, you need to prepare a landing pit. Its depth should be about 60 cm. A drainage layer with a thickness of 15-20 cm should be laid at the bottom of the pit. For this, broken brick, sifted sand is suitable. The soil mixture must be laid out on the drainage layer. To prepare it, you need to mix two parts of peat and one part of soddy soil and sand.
Watch for the root neck of the juniper, it can not be deepened. For a week after planting in the ground, the bush must be watered abundantly. Light shading will not hurt - until the plant has fully taken root. If you plan a group planting of junipers, you should maintain a distance between young plants of about 0.5-1 meters.
Juniper Old Gold: care description
Every gardener knows that juniper of this variety needs watering in dry times. This is best done in a way called "sprinkling", so the plant will get enough moisture. But you need to be careful - excess water can lead to rotting of the roots of this representative of the cypress family. Young plants require shallow cultivation.
Diseases and Pests
Like other green "inhabitants" of the garden, juniper is susceptible to a number of diseases. Some pests, such as a spider mite, scutellum and shoot moth, are also dangerous for it. Chemicals such as Iskra, Karbofos and Fitoverm will help get rid of this scourge.
Afraid of juniper Old Gold and rust. This disease is difficult to treat, but to prevent it is much easier. To do this, just do not plant fruit plants next to it, especially blackcurrant.
Fertilizer application
Gardeners recommend applying most of the fertilizer to the soil once a year - in late April - early May. It is important to remember that juniper middle Old Gold is better not to over feed than overfeed. And not all fertilizers are suitable for this magnificent plant. You can use mineral complexes, such as Nitroammophos. Concentration should be weak - 30 grams per 1 sq.m. root zone of the plant. In no case do not use manure and other organic nitrogen fertilizers for top dressing. Immediately after making nutrients, it is necessary to water the plant.
Pruning
To plant adorned the garden all year round, he needs pruning. Remove dry, diseased and broken branches. Be extremely careful - the plant will recover for a long time.
It is generally accepted that the crown of coniferous plants needs to be formed in the summer. But in the case of Old Gold Juniper, this may worsen his condition. The fact is that a plant trimmed in the second half of summer simply does not have time to get stronger before the onset of cold weather. Any haircut is a serious stress for shrubs of this variety, and therefore, before picking up scissors, it is important to make sure that the plant is healthy and ready for the procedure.
If you decide to form a live juniper hedge, remove all protruding shoots. This must be done carefully, but extremely carefully. In order for the juniper to recover faster after pruning, it is necessary to treat it with preparations containing copper.
Winter preparations
Juniper medium Old Gold has a high resistance to cold, tolerates even Siberian frosts. But in the first year after planting, he needs warming. Before the onset of cooling, the plant can be sprinkled with peat - a 10-centimeter layer is enough. Young shoots need to be covered with spruce branches.
By the way, closer to winter, the needles of this representative of the cypress family can acquire a light bronze hue. Do not worry, this is one of the varietal signs. In spring, the juniper will turn golden again.
Juniper Old Gold: a description of the application in landscape design
The spectacular needles of this amazing plant contrast with the bright emerald foliage of all garden plants. Therefore, very often it is used in the decoration of landscapes. By the way, it is planted not only in various compositions, juniper looks excellent in a single planting. Separate shrubs will decorate the lawns. Old Gold looks amazing as a hedge.
The low growth of Old Gold Juniper allows it to be used in the creation of alpine slides and rocky gardens. But do not focus on this particular shrub, it should just give the composition a finished look.
As neighbors, junipers are suitable thyme, saxifrage, bryozoans. Looks good and a combination with other conifers. A composition with yellow and orange spireas will turn the garden into a paradise! But lush crops next to the juniper do not get along. It is worth abandoning and planting next to this shrub of tender roses, clematis and peonies.
Another interesting way to use juniper is to plant terraces and roofs, balconies and loggias. In such cases, it can be grown in a spacious container.
Interesting fact
Both the needles and juniper branches are poisonous, therefore, they can pose a serious danger to human health. When embarking on pruning Old Gold Juniper , planting or caring for it, care must be taken. And if the juniper juice got on the mucous membranes, it is necessary to rinse them with plenty of water as soon as possible!