The newly developed Meyeri juniper is one of the most unpretentious plants with beautiful blue needles. This species is native to the mountainous regions of China and other countries of East Asia and has been very popular in landscape design for more than 10 years.
Juniper Meyeri: how to grow in the country
Brief information about the variety
- Colour: needles are prickly, bright green, with age the needles darken.
- Height: 60-70 cm.
- Crown diameter: 3-3.5 m.
- Growing regions: the plant has a weak frost resistance, so it can be grown without shelter in the southern zone. In colder areas, good insulation will be required for the winter.
- Landing features: 1.5x2 m, a sunny place with a little shade is suitable.
- Immunity: disease resistance is high.
- Life span: No information found.
General characteristics
Common juniper Meyer belongs to the Cypress family (full name is juniperus squamata meyeri compacta).
The plant does not need fertile soil, frequent watering and nutrition. In its natural environment, it adapted to strong winds, drought and acquired a squat shape.
The description includes several features:
- the ephedra reaches 60-70 cm in height at maturity;
- sprawling shoots, densely covered with needles;
- the diameter of the crown of an adult tree is 3-3.5 m;
- needles are prickly, bright green, greenish-gray, with age, the color acquires a dark green color;
During the year, the plant forms a young growth of 10 to 12 cm in length, the tips of the branches have an intense bluish tint.
Growing regions
An evergreen coniferous plant has a weak frost resistance, so it can be grown without shelter in the southern zone of the country.
In regions with cool and changeable weather (in the Moscow region, the Leningrad region, in the North, in the Central and Middle latitudes), good insulation for the winter will be required.
Landing rules
To grow a beautiful and healthy juniper, you need to choose a good planting material.
The optimal time for planting seedlings is the end of April or the beginning of May, when the soil warms up to a temperature of 10-12 ° C and the outside heat stabilizes.
Sapling selection
You can buy planting material in a gardening nursery or use a plant grown on your own.
When buying, you need to pay attention to the appearance:
- the crown should be of a uniform green tone, without signs of mold, black, red spots and parasites;
- a strong seedling has a bark on the central conductor of the same color, without cracks;
- erect shoots, fresh;
- the root system is shrouded in an earthen clod and burlap or planted in a pot.
The best planting material will be seedlings 3-4 years old, preferably with closed roots, since open roots dry out quickly.
Site preparation
Choose healthy specimens for planting
For growing ephedra, light and loose soil in a sunny place where there is no stagnation of moisture and strong winds is suitable.
The land is freed from weeds, weeded, a mixture is introduced to loosen loam at the rate of a couple of buckets of sand, peat and coniferous soil per 1 m².
This composition increases the aeration of the soil and prevents rotting. Then digging and leveling is carried out. Site preparation is carried out two weeks before the planned planting.
Planting scheme and technique
Pits are dug at a distance of 1.5 m, keeping a distance of 2 m in a row. The depth of the planting holes should be slightly more than the length of the earthen coma.
Half a bucket of crushed stone, brick chips or pebbles are poured to the bottom, which will prevent stagnation of moisture and rotting of the root system.
Up to half the pit is filled with a nutrient composition of sod land, humus and sand, mixed in a ratio of 3: 1: 1.
A lump with roots is lowered, all the resulting voids are filled with the remaining soil, trampled around the trunk and watered abundantly. Consumption per seedling - 5 liters of water.
To prevent rapid evaporation of moisture and drying out of the root system, the near-trunk zone is mulched with a thick layer of peat or coniferous soil.
Care requirements
Meyeri's scaly juniper easily adapts to any growing conditions - it does not need frequent watering and feeding, but this applies to the wild-growing species.
To achieve high decorativeness from the ephedra in a personal plot, it is necessary to provide minimal care.
Watering
The first moistening is carried out as the soil dries out in the near-trunk zone to a depth of 5-6 cm.
Water is poured warm and under the root to avoid burning needles and shoots.
Further frequency depends on weather conditions and amount of precipitation. The main thing is not to overmoisten the plant, otherwise it will rot and die, so it is better not to top up than to pour.
Meyeri responds positively to frequent sprinkling - 2-3 times a week. The watering and irrigation procedure is best carried out in the evening, when the sun sets and the risk of burning the aboveground part is minimal.
Loosening and mulching
This needles have a superficial branched root system, so loosening is carried out carefully, to a depth of 3-4 cm, so as not to damage the delicate roots.
Repeat the procedure a day after each watering to improve its moisture and breathability.
The soil is weeded between the rows, weeds are removed, which drowns out young conifers and creates thickets for the appearance of various parasites.
Mulching with peat soil, pine chips or sawdust protects the roots from drying out and prevents weeds from growing. The optimal mulch thickness is 5-6 cm.
Top dressing
Top dressing strengthens the root system
Basic care for Meyeri's juniper includes regular fertilization.
The first top dressing is given the next year - in early spring before the blooming of vegetative buds.
3 liters of liquid nitrogen preparation (solution of nitrophoska, ammophoska or urea) are poured under the root: 15 g of the substance is dissolved in 10 liters of water.
This nutrient composition promotes intensive green mass and root growth.
The second time they are fed with minerals - superphosphate (15 g) and potassium nitrate (10 g), diluted in a bucket of water.
Consumption per copy - 3 liters. Spill in the fall a month before the onset of the first frost. Both components strengthen the root system, increase the immunity and cold resistance of plants before wintering.
Pruning
Scaly juniper does not need formative pruning, but if you want to give it a special shape, then it is better to start this procedure in early spring.
You can cut each branch, but not shorter than a third of the length, otherwise it can lead to the death of the needles.
A sanitary haircut is carried out in the spring without fail - they remove branches damaged by winds, frosts, diseases, as well as shoots that have dried up and grow in the wrong direction.
To avoid infection, all sections are treated with a solution of copper sulfate or Bordeaux liquid.
Preparation for wintering
Basic plant care includes careful preparation for wintering, especially for specimens grown in cold regions.
Two weeks before the onset of cold weather, the near-trunk zone is mulched with a thick layer of peat, coniferous sawdust, fallen leaves or garden soil.
Then the twigs are bent to the central trunk, tied with twine and covered with spruce branches, burlap or roofing felt.
Reproduction
The description includes three methods of propagation: by seeds, layering and cuttings.
The first is laborious and is mainly used by breeders to improve the variety, to obtain new hybrid forms.
Growing with the last two methods gives a quick and effective result.
Layers
A healthy plant can be propagated by layering
The best time for the procedure is early or mid September.
To obtain new conifers, use a healthy plant 5-6 years old. Next to the bush, a trench is dug along the length of the branch, 4-5 cm deep.
A nutrient mixture is laid at the bottom, which is taken when planting seedlings. All needles are carefully removed from the branch and lowered into the groove, fixed with staples, sprinkled with soil and spilled with water.
Two weeks before the onset of cold weather, mulch with a thick layer of peat or garden soil.
The first shoots can be expected in spring (early or mid-April).
Then the shoot is cut off from the mother plant, divided into parts so that on each segment there are several roots with young buds and planted separately in an open area.
Cuttings
Cuttings are prepared in the summer - in the middle or at the end of July from an adult and healthy plant.
Apical shoots 15-20 cm long are cut off together with a piece of lignified bark. Slightly above it, on a branch, all shoots and needles are removed, and immediately planted in a loose and nutritious mixture - from sand and peat (1: 1). Close up to a depth of 3-4 cm at an inclination of 45 °.
For cultivation, use seedling boxes or containers 10 cm high with several drainage holes. The plantings are irrigated with warm water, covered with transparent film or halves of cut plastic bottles, placed in a warm place with diffused daylight.
The optimum temperature for rooting is 21-23 ° C.
Before the appearance of the first shoots on the cuttings, regular airing, moistening of the substrate, surface loosening and removal of weeds are carried out
The roots appear slowly - after about 2-3 months, after which they remove the shelter and lower the temperature to 18-19 ° C.
It is recommended to transplant scaly juniper into open ground only after a year and a half, at the beginning or in mid-September. With an earlier transplant, the probability of survival in a new place is very low.
Diseases and pests
This plant rarely gets sick, but under conditions of poor care and violation of agricultural practices, it is damaged by rust.
The sore manifests itself in the form of red or dark brown shapeless growths on the central conductor and shoots.
If timely measures are not taken, the ephedra will quickly die, because the infection spreads rapidly, especially in high humidity.
All damaged parts on the plant are removed, the crown and soil around the trunk are treated with one of the fungicides - a solution of copper sulfate, Bordeaux liquid, Skor, Ridomil Gold.
Of the pests, Meyeri annoys juniper:
- Aphid. This microscopic insect settles in colonies on needles, young buds and the growth of the current year - it sucks out juices, leads to their yellowing, drying out and falling off. You can get rid of the parasite with the help of Iskra - 1 tablet is dissolved in 10 liters of water. Irrigation is carried out three times with an interval of 5 days. Places of strong accumulation of aphids must be irrigated with karbofos.
- Sawfly. This insect damages young shoots, contributes to their drying out and fragility. Signs - the appearance of mucus in the nodal parts, near the kidneys. You can exterminate it with three-fold irrigation with insecticides - Fufanon, Aktellik or Aktara.
- Shield. It slows down the growth of the shrub, and in case of a strong invasion, it leads to its death. To combat, use the drug Confidor, Calypso or Aktara.
- Small mosquitoes, gall midge. They are rare, but they also cause considerable harm to the health and decorativeness of the bush. You can destroy it with Aktellik, Fundazol or Aktara.
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Application in landscape
Unpretentious in care and maintenance, Mayeri juniper is actively used in landscape design:
- in single and group plantings with other low-growing conifers, cereals, roses;
- perfectly hides all inconspicuous and problem areas in personal plots;
- used in landscaping park areas and alleys;
- suitable for creating multilevel gardens from different varieties of needles;
- planted in a flowerbed in combination with ground cover plants and mosses.
Reviews
In gardeners from different regions of our country, decorative needles have earned only a positive characteristic:
- seedlings take root well in a new place, and with good care and attention they practically do not get sick;
- beginners are attracted by this juniper variety for its unpretentious care - no formative pruning is required, you can use conventional preparations for fertilizing conifers;
- high reproduction ability by cuttings and layering makes it possible to grow a large number of young bushes on the site to create any compositions in landscape design.