Juniper is distributed throughout Russia. It can be seen in forests, parks and squares, in flower beds and individual alleys. It is important to know how to plant and care for junipers in the Urals, Siberia, and the Moscow region. Culture is doing well in these regions. For each of them, it is necessary to select zoned varieties, carry out care measures, taking into account weather conditions, characteristics of the variety and soil.
Juniper in the Urals
In the Urals, varieties of juniper grow, which, in addition to performing decorative functions, produce edible berries. They are collected for medicinal purposes, cooking, and for making drinks. Of the species of berries growing in the Chelyabinsk region, you can eat common and Siberian juniper. In the Urals, in the forest, juniper grows in the form of a bush or tree. Its height varies - from specimens creeping along the ground to two-meter ones.The berries of the plant are dark blue in color and have a bluish bloom. Their taste is spicy and sweetish. The fruits ripen in September, but picking them is not very convenient because of the plant’s needles. In the Urals, a common method of collection is to spread a cloth under the coniferous tree, and gently knock on the branches of the tree and collect the berries that are already ripe and falling on the cloth.
The Cossack juniper grows in the Chelyabinsk region, the shoots of which are poisonous, and you can distinguish it from non-poisonous varieties by the unpleasant smell of pine needles and berries. They cannot be collected or eaten.
Where does juniper grow in the Urals
Juniper is widespread throughout the Russian Federation, from the border with Finland to the Yenisei River and the Chelyabinsk region. The growing area passes through the Southern Urals and the coast of the Belaya River.
Most of all in the Urals there is common juniper. This is a low (65 cm) creeping shrub. Its diameter reaches 2 m.
It is quite difficult to take a photo of the Kazatsky juniper variety in the Urals, since the plant is listed in the Red Book of the region. Only in the south of the region can you find this culture.
Common juniper is widespread in coniferous, deciduous and mixed forests of the Chelyabinsk region. He loves edges, clearings, well lit by the sun. In the Taganay National Park, conifers grow in the mountains, covering the slopes of Yurma, Kruglitsa and others.
Juniper varieties for the Urals
For landscaping gardens and parks, home areas, garden plots in the Ural region, you can use not only junipers growing in the wild, but also other varieties that are grown in nurseries.The main conditions when choosing a variety will be unpretentiousness, the ability to endure harsh winters without shelter, and withstand drought and bright sunlight.
These varieties include varieties of Ordinary, Chinese, Cossack and others:
- Arcadia. This is an unpretentious ground cover juniper. It is frost-hardy, prefers sunny places and dry soils. Ephedra is able to protect the soil from erosion, and also tolerates gas pollution well. The plant has soft, light green needles and harmonizes well with low deciduous and coniferous trees. It tolerates shearing easily, so it is successfully used to create hedges. Arcadia juniper has a height of up to 0.5 m and a crown diameter of 2.5 m. The winter hardiness of the crop is good;
- Glauka. The variety is classified as dwarf. Juniper has numerous thin, long shoots directed horizontally. The leaves of the plant fit tightly to the branches, the needles are bluish in color and scaly all year round. Ephedra grows well in lighted areas and is also tolerant of light shade. In landscape design, it is recommended to plant the plant in group and single plantings. In the climatic conditions of the Urals, a young plant should be covered for the winter;
- Blue Arrow. Columnar Chinese juniper. The height of the tree is up to 5 m, the diameter is 1 m. The crown grows by 15 cm per year. The shoots are tightly pressed to the trunk and directed upward. The needles of the plant are blue and scaly. The variety is frost-resistant and loves sunny places. Used mainly for hedges, can be grown in a container;
- Skyrocket. Juniper has a narrow crown and blue needles. The height of the tree is up to 10 m, the diameter is 1 m. Khvoynikov is light-loving, undemanding to the soil, and tolerates pruning well.In winter, it needs a garter to the support so that the crown does not fall apart under the weight of snow. The plant is winter hardy;
- Meyeri. Scaly juniper with funnel-shaped diverging shoots. Its needles are blue, thick, needle-like. The height of the bush reaches 3 m, diameter – 2 m. The culture prefers light, drained soils. The winter hardiness of the plant is very high.
Planting and caring for juniper in the Urals
Juniper is planted in the Urals when the snow melts - in late April-early May. For this:
- Prepare a pit 50 cm deep and 1 m in diameter.
- Place drainage 20 cm thick on the bottom.
- The root collar of the plant should be located 10 cm above the ground.
- The seedling is watered, soil is poured into the voids and watered again.
- Mulch the tree trunk circle with peat, pine bark, a layer of 10 cm.
The first year the seedling is regularly watered and covered for the winter. After a year, you can fertilize. Its time is spring. In autumn, fertilizers are undesirable due to the possible lack of time for the formation of shoots. Pruning for sanitary and cosmetic purposes is carried out in the spring, before the buds open, and also in August. For wintering, young plants should be covered; for adults, the tree trunk circles should be thoroughly mulched (with a layer of up to 20 cm).
Juniper in Siberia
Common juniper grows in Siberia, it is called heather. Coniferous evergreen plant easily tolerates temperatures below -50⁰oC, therefore widely used for planting in harsh conditions.
Varieties of different forms are used for landscaping: from ground cover to bushes and trees. The height ranges from 0.5 m to 20 m. But the most common specimens found in gardens are 3-4 m high. Fruits called cones ripen on them.
It is believed that a special species grows in the vastness of Siberia - Siberian juniper. But scientists do not have a consensus on this matter. Many believe that this is just a variety of common juniper, not different from it in anything except its geographical location. The plant originates from cypress trees. It has the appearance of a bush spreading along the ground. Its height is about 1 m.
Where does juniper grow in Siberia?
The most common in Siberia, as well as throughout Russia, are three types of junipers: Cossack, Ordinary, Daurian.
- Ordinary - has the shape of a tree or bush. The harsher the climate, the lower the plant;
- Creeping Cossack - a low, widely spread bush (up to 20 m wide), grows in the mountains of Siberia, densely covering their slopes. This plant especially loves the tops of mountains, where it binds stones with its roots, preventing landslides from developing;
- The variety is found in the Siberian taiga and forests of the Far East Daursky: smaller, up to 60 cm high.
Junipers grow in western Siberia, in its northern part. They represent dwarf forms that grow over large areas. Thickets of the plant can be observed in rocky areas in mountainous areas, in sparse deciduous forests, and in dwarf cedar trees.
Juniper varieties for Siberia
Juniper has good frost resistance. For the conditions of Siberia, varieties are needed in which this indicator is especially pronounced:
- Depression. It is an evergreen coniferous shrub 0.3 m high and 1.5 m wide. The plant has beautiful golden needles. Young shoots are bright yellow; by winter they turn brown. Juniper loves bright places or weak partial shade.The plant is frost-resistant, not demanding on soil, does not tolerate dry air well, and loves sprinkling. Its use in rocky gardens and rock gardens is recommended. Goes well with deciduous and coniferous plants;
- Montana. This is a ground cover creeping horizontal shrub 0.5 m high and up to 2.5 m wide. It has green or bluish needles. The soil for juniper requires fertile, well-drained soil. The plant is light-loving, but can grow in partial shade and has high frost resistance. In design it is used in single and group plantings as a ground cover;
- Green Carpet. Common juniper, dwarf type. It has a cushion-shaped crown. The annual growth is 25 cm. Young shoots are erect, but quickly droop and intertwine, forming a bush 10 cm high and 1.5 m in diameter. The branches of the crop have green needles with a blue stripe and blue cones. The plant is unpretentious, frost-resistant, drought-resistant;
- Hibernica. This variety of juniper in adulthood has a height of 3.5 m, a diameter of 1 m. A plant with a dense, narrow, columnar crown. Its branches are directed upwards, the needles are needle-shaped and bluish in color. Conifer grows slowly, it is frost-resistant, loves sunny places, but is unpretentious to the soil. Culture is intended for small and group compositions;
- Mac. Juniper with widely spread branches, has a height of about 2 m, crown diameter - 5 - 7 m. The needles of the plant are bluish-green, with a bronze tint in winter. The shrub loves sunny areas and tolerates partial shade. The variety is frost-resistant, has low demands on soil fertility, and does not tolerate salinity and waterlogging.
Planting and caring for juniper in Siberia
In the harsh climatic conditions of Siberia, Daursky, Dalnevostochny and other acclimatized and zoned varieties grow.
Planting frost-resistant species is carried out according to the following rules:
- the time for work to be carried out is no earlier than the end of April, when the snow melts and the soil warms up;
- Planting before winter should not be done; the plant may not have time to take root;
- the place should be sunny;
- soil - sandy or sandy loam;
- the absence of close occurrence of groundwater is required;
- it is necessary to prepare a hole 2 - 3 times larger than the juniper soil clod;
- in the planting hole you need to add drainage made of bricks, pebbles, sand 20 cm thick;
- the root collar is placed at ground level if the plant is young, and 6 cm above it if it is mature;
- the tree trunk circle is mulched with cones, nut shells, and peat in a 10 cm layer;
- watering should be plentiful.
Caring for Siberian junipers consists of timely moistening, periodic feeding, pruning, and shelter for the winter.
At first after planting, watering should be regular, but later it can be reduced. It is worth shading the seedling so that the needles do not get burned in the sun. Feeding is carried out until September. Otherwise, after rapid growth, the conifer will not be able to prepare for winter, and the immature shoots will freeze. Most varieties do not require pruning. If necessary, it should be done in early spring or late summer.
In the first winter, juniper in Siberia is covered with spruce branches, burlap and other available materials. In the future, you don’t have to do this: the plants acclimatize and overwinter well.
Juniper in the Moscow region
Common juniper is the most common species in the Moscow region.It is listed in the Appendix to the Red Book of the Moscow Region, as it is endangered. Most often, trees are found in the Kuzminsky Forest Park, in Losiny Ostrov, on the slopes of the Klyazma River. Conifer grows well on poor soils in light pine and birch forests. On more fertile lands, juniper cannot withstand competition with its fast-growing neighbors, which choke it out. The culture can grow on the edges and under the forest canopy. Does well on sandy soils and loams. The plant grows best where others find it uncomfortable. It tolerates grass burning and replanting extremely negatively.
Juniper varieties for the Moscow region
For growing junipers in the Moscow region, there are many varieties with different shapes, sizes, colors, and purposes:
- Horstman. Juniper is a weeping species and has a very original appearance. When the central stem is tied, the conifer looks like a tree, and if this is not done, it looks like a shrub. In adulthood, it reaches a height of 3 m and a diameter of 3 m. The annual growth is 20 cm. The plant is winter-hardy, unpretentious, prefers sunny places. In the shade it can stretch out and lose its bright color;
- Gold Con. Slow growing juniper with a dense conical crown. The plant reaches a height of 2 m and has golden needles. Grows well in light, well-drained soils, loves sunny areas, and thins out in the shade. The variety is frost-resistant and suffers from snow pressure, so the plant needs to tie its branches. The culture is used in landscaping parks and alleys;
- GRay Owl. This is a spreading bush juniper up to 1.5 m high and 4 m in diameter. Its needles are gray-green, 7 mm long.The branches grow horizontally, hanging at the ends in the form of threads. The plant loves sunny areas and grows well on sandstones;
- Varieties Suetsika, Virgin Burki, Kanaerti, and many others are also successfully used for landscaping in the Moscow region.
Planting and caring for juniper in the Moscow region
Planting junipers in the Moscow region differs from a similar process in the Urals and Siberia, first of all, in the timing. In the Moscow region, conifers can be planted in early spring, summer (with a closed root system), autumn and winter (mature plants). Planting rules remain the same for all regions.
Mineral fertilizers and organic matter are used for fertilizing in May and August. They are carried out twice per season: the first time in May, during growth activation, the second time in August. Pruning is carried out at the end of winter, before the buds open. In the first year after planting, it is worth protecting the seedlings for the winter from freezing and burning of the needles in the spring sun.
Conclusion
Planting and caring for juniper in the Urals, Siberia, and the Moscow region does not make much difference and does not present any difficulties or special troubles. A large number of varieties, acclimatized to any conditions in Russia, gives gardeners ample opportunities to decorate their plots, local areas, alleys and squares for many years.
