Juniper Expansa Variegat

Junipers are very popular among amateur gardeners and landscape designers. These evergreen coniferous shrubs require little maintenance. They can grow in regions with harsh winters and dry summer months. Dwarf juniper varieties are ideal for decorating areas of any size. It is only important to take into account the ability of the shoots to grow in width. With their help, you can form a green cover on a rocky area without much effort. Juniper Expansa Variegata (Juniperus chinensis Expansa Variegata) is an excellent option for decorating a site, regardless of its size and relief features. This article will discuss how to grow a juniper of this variety and how to properly care for it in order to provide it with an attractive appearance for many years.

Chinese juniper Expansa Variegata: variety description

The low-growing creeping juniper of the Expansa Variegata variety deservedly enjoys the sympathy of landscape designers. The unusual coloring of its needles and the compact shape of the crown allows you to place the bushes of this variety even in small areas, creating unusual color schemes.

The crown of the juniper Expansa Variegat grows quite widely and can reach 120 cm in width. Its shoots adhere tightly to the surface of the earth and spread along it. At the same time, the growth rate of branches of this variety of juniper is not high. They lengthen by only 10 cm per year.

The maximum height that the Expans Variegat bushes reach is 50 cm. The juniper needles of the Expans Variegat have a bluish-green color with spots of a lighter shade, sometimes close to beige. Such areas are called sun spots.

Lush and variegated, but neat, juniper bushes decorate garden compositions. With the onset of autumn, the color of the needles changes to brown with a bronze tint. Young juniper bushes have soft, flexible needles. With age, it becomes tough and prickly.

Starting from the second year of life, the Expans Variegat juniper bears fruit with rounded cones of a light green hue, which eventually acquire a darker color, becoming bluish-black. The buds contain long, triangular seeds.

The high concentration of essential oils in juniper needles gives it a pleasant aroma. And the phytoncides secreted by its tissues contribute to the destruction of up to 30% of pathogens.

Juniper variety Expansa Variegata has a high degree of frost resistance. And also does not require much effort to care for him. Mature bushes are able to withstand frosts down to -28 degrees without special shelter. However, shelter is required for young bushes that have not yet matured. The tops of their shoots will suffer from a strong drop in temperature at first. Over time, juniper bushes will become more resistant to severe frosts.

Juniper Chinese Expansa Variegata: planting and caring for the variety

Photo of the Chinese juniper Expans Variegat

To grow an Expansa Variegat juniper in your backyard or home plot, you must adhere to simple, but certainly important, rules.

Optimal environmental conditions

Due to its unpretentious nature, the Expansa Variegata juniper is successfully cultivated not only in regions with a harsh climate, but also in urban conditions. Juniper bushes are not harmed by the polluted city air or dust. Therefore, they can be planted near highways.

Much greater harm to the juniper of Expans Variegat can be caused by excess moisture in the soil, as well as its complete absence.

Optimal conditions for growing juniper varieties Expansa Variegata are achieved in well-lit areas. In the shade or partial shade, the plant will survive, but will greatly lose in its decorative qualities. Due to the lack of sunlight, its needles lose their unusual shade. It begins to fall off, which harms the lush crown of the coniferous bush.

Both sandy and rocky are suitable for growing Expans Variegat juniper the soil... Suitable acidity levels range from neutral to slightly acidic. Juniper bushes will take root on heavy loams. But in this case, they will need drainage.

Sand, brick crumbs, gravel are suitable for the formation of a drainage layer. The drainage layer should be placed on the bottom of the planting pit before the juniper seedling is placed there. The depth and width of the planting hole should be twice the earthen clod that protects the root system of the juniper bush.

In the event that several juniper bushes of Expans Variegat are planted at the same time, the distance between the planting recesses should be correctly calculated. The expected crown diameter must be taken into account.

There are several ways breeding juniper Expansa Variegat. Bushes grown from seeds are the most resistant to frost. This method is laborious and time-consuming. But the sprouts obtained will be durable and frost-resistant.

The germination stage alone will take from 1 to 2 years. Keep this in mind when deciding to grow a juniper from seed. The methods of cuttings and propagation by layering are much simpler and do not require special knowledge and skills.

Juniper care "Expansa Variegat"

Caring for the Expansa Variegata juniper variety consists in watering, fertilizing, loosening the soil and sanitary pruning of the bush.

Adult juniper bushes need watering and fertilization only if they are weakened as a result of unfavorable conditions. Watering the Expans Variegat juniper is enough just a couple of times during the season, during the driest periods. Areas with loose soil may require more watering, but should not be done more than once a month.

After watering a young juniper bush, you should loosen the soil in the near-stem circle. In especially dry summer months, you can sprinkle the crown of the juniper. The optimal time for this is evening, when exposure to direct sunlight is excluded.

Introduction feeding recommended to be applied at the end of spring. What can you use nitroammofosku or a solution of the drug "Kemira Universal".

In the spring, there is also a sanitary pruning, the purpose of which is to remove damaged and dry shoots so that healthy parts of the bush receive more nutrition after wintering. Shoots should be removed carefully, observing the measure. Because excessive pruning is traumatic for juniper, which will take a long time to heal wounds and regenerate.

How juniper is used in landscaping

Amateur gardeners and landscape designers highly appreciate the Chinese juniper "Expansa Variegata" for its decorative qualities. Due to its compact size, this variety can be planted both in the form of group plantings and in single accents.

Since juniper helps to strengthen the soil, it is often placed on crumbling slopes and slopes. Juniper bushes can be used to form hedges, curbs, protective stripes, coverings for alpine slides.

Often, juniper is used to decorate Japanese-style gardens, to decorate rockeries, as an integral element of extensive green compositions. Juniper "Expansa Variegat" goes well with such delicate and bright plants as roses, creating a green background for them.

The neighborhood of juniper plantings with heather crops, with ornamental cereals, honeysuckle and erika will also be successful. Juniper bushes are used to decorate not only lawns and flower beds, but also for decorating verandas, gazebos, balconies, terraces.

Another important advantage of the Expansa Variegata juniper is its ability to deodorize and disinfect the air. Cultivation of juniper of the Chinese "Expans Variegat" does not require special knowledge and skills.

These evergreen coniferous shrubs are distinguished by their unpretentious nature and are successfully cultivated even in adverse environmental conditions. Following agrotechnical recommendations, even a novice amateur gardener can easily grow dwarf juniper bushes "Expansa Variegata" on his plot.