Scientific Name:
Juniperus horizontalis
cvs.
Pronunciation:
joo-NIP-ur-us hore-ih-zun-TAY-liss
Common Name:
creeping juniper, horizontal juniper
Family Name:
Cupressaceae
Plant Type:
Conifer, Ground cover
Key ID Features:
Low growing, dense evergreen mat, sprawling, with trailing branch tips; leaves soft, most scale-like, 1.5-2mm long, tightly pressed to stem; awl-shaped juvenile leaves may also occur in more shaded parts, 4-8mm long; dioecious - seed cones fleshy, maturing to bluish-purple, slightly glaucous, subglobose, 5-7mm long; seeds 1-2(-3) per cone, 4-5mm long. Conifers.org
Habit:
Spreading
Form:
Creeping / Mat-like
Texture:
Fine
Mature Height:
0.2 - 0.4m
Mature Spread:
2 - 3m
Growth Rate:
Slow
Origin:
North America
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 2: (-46 to -40 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun
Soil/Growing Medium:
Rocky or gravelly or dry, Well-drained
Water Use:
Low
Landscape Uses:
Alpine, Erosion control, Filler, Group or mass planting, Mixed shrub border, Reclamation, Rock garden
Additional Info:
Google. Cultivars shown or on campus may include
J. 'Bar Harbor',
J. ‘Blue Chip’, and
J. ‘Wiltonii’ (scale foliage only). Over 100 cultivars exist and some are more green than bluish-grey. Compare to Siberian cypress.
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Scale-like
Arrangement:
Opposite, Imbricate
Texture/Venation:
Prickly
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Distinctive smell
Colour in Summer:
Bluish, Green
Colour in Fall:
Bluish, Green
Shapes:
Deltoid, Other
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Sheathing
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
scales 1-2 x 1 - 1.5mm; awl-shaped juvenile leaves 5-10mm long
Inflorescence Type:
n/a (male cone)
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Colour (petals):
Male cone, No flowers, Brown
Flower Time at Peak:
Mar, Apr
Fruit Type:
Cone (winged seeds)
Fruit Colour:
Blue (dark blue with pale waxy residue)
Fruiting Time:
Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
Showy, berry-like, 2 seeded
Bark Morphology:
Papery, Exfoliating
Bark or Stem Colour:
Red, Brown
Propagation:
Seed, Softwood cuttings
Pest Susceptibility:
Abiotic disorder, Beetles or weevils, Blight or needle cast, Caterpillar or cutworm, Heart rot, Leaf miner insect, Mites, Nematodes, Root rot, Rust, Scale insects (Deer resistant, Drought tolerant)
Course(s):
- CLT Training
- HORT 1155
- Level 1 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (BCE) Boulevard (Circular) Eastend
- (GRB) GRass Bed : cv. Bar Harbor
- (LTW) Langley Township Walk
- (NRY) NuRserY : zone 5