Junipers have long been fashionable. These evergreen shrubs adorn parks and flower beds, ennoble the landscape of personal plots. In total, 75 species of plants are included in the genus, but approximately 10 of them are used to decorate modern cities and towns. One of the favorite types of landscape designers is Juniper Horstmann. It is with him we will get to know each other better.
Why was juniper called juniper?
The genus of Junipers belongs to evergreen coniferous shrubs and trees from the Cypress family. Different peoples met different names for these plants. For example, in the Turkic language it is called "archa", in Russian there is a second name - "heather", in the Ukrainian language the plant is called "yalivets". But the usual name "juniper" has pro-Slavic roots. The approximate meaning of this word is to knit or weave.
The international scientific name for this genus of plants was given in 1753. In Latin, it sounds like Juniperus. The approximate value is interpreted differently. In some sources, this is a "branch suitable for weaving," and in others it is a "prickly branch."
Juniper Horstmann Description
Juniper Horstmann is a tall vertical coniferous shrub whose branches are widely spaced and can occupy a large area. The extreme shoots at the ends of the branches have a drooping shape, which gives the entire bush a "weeping" look. An adult plant is considered the most beautiful of all types of "weeping" junipers.
The average height of the juniper bush is 2 m. Some plants reach 2.5-3 m. The common juniper Horstmann is able to spread branches so wide that it will cover a circle up to 2 m in diameter. The crown of this tree-like shrub is quite dense. It has the shape of a cone with a wide base.
Decorative needles of this type of juniper are painted in dark green color. These are small, hard and prickly needles. Juniper Horstmann is distinguished by the trihedral shape of coniferous needles that hold on branches for up to four years. The length of the needles is 1.5 cm.
Both tree and shrub forms have a fibrous gray-brown bark and reddish-brown shoots. The plant lives up to 200 years.
How does juniper blossom?
Juniper Horstmann blooms in May. The plant has two types of flowers: male yellow, female green. Botanists male and female juniper flowers are called spikelets. The male spikelet is most often solitary, formed in the sinuses of last year's leaflets or on the side shoots. It has 3 scaly-shaped stamens with longitudinally opening anthers. Female spikelets appear on axillary shortened branches.
After flowering on the bushes, berry-like cones form. Juniper Horstmann has cones of gray-blue color. Their shape is somewhat rounded, and the structure is fleshy. The size of each cone is about 0.5 cm. At first they are green, but then their color changes, and a bluish wax coating appears. Juniper berries look very impressive on an ornamental plant.
Juniper Horstmann: Planting and Plant Care
For an ordinary juniper, Hortsmann should choose a sunny place. In extreme cases, slight temporary shading is allowed. To the type of soil, the plant does not make great demands. It will normally feel on poor, and on alkaline, and on acidic soils. It survives best on sandy and loamy soils with good drainage, but can even be planted on rocky areas.
This type of juniper does not like excess moisture, so it is not planted in lowlands and wetlands. Juniper Horstmann will not be able to grow if the soil is saline.
If the plant is acquired in a nursery, then its root system will be provided with prolonged fertilizers. Most likely, the plant will be sold in a pot, and it can be planted in the soil at no additional cost for 10 months a year (excluding January and February).
In order for Juniper Horstmann, the photo of which is presented above, to grow well, you need to water it regularly, and from the next spring after planting, start feeding. For fertilizing, you can use complex fertilizers.
With the beginning of vegetation under the plant, it is necessary to loosen and mulch the soil. To protect against fungi and diseases, juniper is treated with fungicidal preparations. To protect against pests in the spring, preventive spraying with insecticides is performed.
Volatile properties
All varieties of juniper , and Horstmann is no exception, have a high phytoncidity. This means that the plant emits biologically active volatile substances that can kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria, fungi, small midges and protozoa.
Since Juniper Horstmann emits special substances used in antitumor therapy, it is often planted on the territory of medical institutions.