One of the most popular evergreen shrubs in landscape design is Juniper Meyeri, which is distinguished by its elegant crown shape and original gray-blue needles. High decorativeness inspires professionals and ordinary gardeners to create unique compositions in the garden, parks and city streets. But to obtain the expected result, the creeping shrub requires attention and proper care.
Juniper Meyeri: Description
Very often it is called single-seed, since ellipsoidal fruits resembling berries contain only one seed. The homeland of the plant is the mountainous regions of Taiwan, China and Afghanistan. It grows sparsely and is a ground cover shrub.
A characteristic feature - pointed, awl-shaped needles of gray or blue-green hue, arrangement in whorls - three pieces, each has a longitudinal silver-white strip. The bush attracts with its thick needles and its unusual shade with steel blue.
Winter hardiness Juniper Meyeri is average. In height reaches from 30 cm to 1 m. Hanging shoots, creeping. It grows fast enough, annual growth is about 10 cm. The plant is often used as a pot for creating bonsai (see the photo in the article below).
Site location and soil
The plant is sensitive to the factor of illumination, so he needs to choose a bright, sunny place in the garden. In the shade, the decorative needles and its bluish color are lost, and the crown becomes sparse and uneven. There are no special requirements to the composition of the soil, it has the ability to adapt to a wide range of soils. Meanwhile, it develops best in conditions of moderate moisture and a well-drained substrate. Waterlogging and excessively humid air in combination with the heat of the bush does not tolerate well.
Juniper Meyeri: planting and care
In the case of heavy clay soil, a mixture of peat, sand, garden soil in equal proportions should be added to the planting pit, and a drainage layer of broken brick or expanded clay should be poured to the bottom. It is advisable to add mineral fertilizers when planting, for example, Kemira Universal, plus 300 g of nitrofoska.
Experienced gardeners use the Epin preparation for better survival. The size of the planting pit depends on the size of the root system of Juniper Meyeri. Landing is carried out quickly to avoid drying out, but carefully, in order to avoid damage to the earthen coma. After this, the bush should be watered abundantly and for the first time covered from direct sunlight.
Further care for it consists of watering in the event of drought and hot weather and shelter for the winter in central Russia, in the suburbs this can not be done. As a rule, pruning is not performed, but branches can be slightly shortened to control the height. Juniper Meyeri is responsive to fertilizer application. If they were added during planting, then top dressing is best done after 2-3 years. Do not use strong organic fertilizers (manure, chicken droppings), as there is a high probability of root burns. The roundabout circle is best mulched with wood chips, needles or peat.
Diseases and Pests
Junipers are quite resistant to various diseases and pests. If such arise, then the cause must first be sought in the erroneous departure. Of the few pests, it is worth noting a spider mite, scutellum and shoot moth. Perform preventive treatment of plants with insecticidal preparations such as "Actara", "Spark", "Fitoverm", etc. Of the bacterial diseases, rust is the most dangerous. In order to protect Juniper Meyeri (photo above), do not plant fruit bushes and trees, especially currants, nearby, and also remove dried and diseased branches in time and treat with preparations containing copper (“HOM”, copper sulfate, etc.).