Guide to Junipers: 9 Types of Juniper Trees and Shrubs

Junipers are coniferous trees or shrubs (meaning they bear seeds that are cones) belonging to the genus Juniperus and the cypress family Cupressaceae. They have needle-like or scale-like leaves and the female plants produce berry-like cones.

Juniper trees and shrubs are native to Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America. Up to 67 species and around 400 cultivars (hybrids bred for specific characteristics) exist in the Northern Hemisphere.

A popular conifer in landscaping, junipers retain their color year-round, requiring little to no maintenance. They can tolerate air pollution and are drought-tolerant after the first two years. Some gardeners find junipers attractive for their vivid foliage—which comes in dark green, gray-green, reddish-brown, or blue-green colors—and colorful “berries” (green, blue, or purple, depending on the cones’ ripeness).

To maintain healthy, lush-looking juniper bushes or trees, consider these tips:

• Choose the right soil. Junipers can grow in many soil types as long as the soil doesn’t retain moisture, as junipers need only the moisture that natural rainfall provides. You can plant them in pots any time of year, but if you’re planting them in the ground, mild times of year—spring or fall—are optimal for their survival. It’s inadvisable to plant junipers near apple trees, as this can make them susceptible to cedar-apple rust, an unsightly and destructive pathogenic fungus.
• Don’t over-prune. Junipers maintain their shape well naturally and require no pruning. In the springtime, remove any dead branches and trim the leaves only if you want to tighten up the shape. Since older growth doesn’t easily regenerate new material, take care not to trim past the point of new growth, as you can do permanent damage.
• Monitor the moisture. Junipers require very little water. Water every one to two weeks until the plant establishes, which can take about two years. Providing junipers with too much water can actually cause disease.
• Provide as much light as possible. These conifers require full sun or only partial shade to retain their tight shape. If they receive too much shade, the juniper will begin spreading its branches as a way of searching for more sunlight; if this occurs, there’s no way to restore the plant’s original shape.
• Watch out for pests. Juniper’s sharp needles and often bitter-tasting berries—actually modified cones—make it fairly deer-resistant. Spider mites, juniper twig girdlers, juniper needle miners, bagworms, sawflies, and bark beetles are all common pests; however, you can typically treat these with common insecticides.

Junipers are trees and shrubs as well as ground cover and edging plants. Here are a few significant types of juniper.

1. 1. ‘Blue Pacific’ (J. conferta): Also called shore juniper, this type has aqua-blue foliage all year round and softer needles. It enjoys regular watering for the first couple of years. You may also see it referred to as blue carpet or blue rug juniper.
2. 2. California juniper (J. californica): This juniper is most often found in California but also extends into northwestern Arizona. This is one of the most popular species of juniper to grow as a bonsai plant.
3. 3. Canary Islands juniper (J. cedrus): This species of juniper is native to the Canary Islands and presents as a large, upright tree with gray-green foliage. Aside from its native environment, it grows best in Mediterranean climates.
4. 4. Creeping juniper (J. horizontalis): Juniperus horizontalis makes a hardy ground cover plant and will retain its natural starfish shape if pruned sparingly.
5. 5. ‘Daub’s Frosted’ (J. x media): A cultivar of the Chinese juniper, ‘Daub’s Frosted’ is also known as ‘Pfitzeriana’ (J. x pfitzeriana), a designation for some hybrid crosses of J. chinensis and J. sabina. This juniper has two-toned foliage and dark red, twisted bark.
6. 6. Eastern red cedar (J. virginiana): Native to eastern North American, Juniperus virginiana is a slow-growing juniper with dense branches and leaves. In poor soil, it will remain a bush but is capable of growing into a tall tree. This type of juniper can live for more than 900 years.
7. 7. ‘Oblonga Pendula’ (J. communis): Frequently called common juniper, juniperus communis is unusual for its bright green needles that appear soft but are still sharp to the touch.
8. 8. Rocky Mountain juniper (J. scopulorum): Also called Rocky Mountain Red Cedar, the needles of this juniper appear white when it’s young but eventually mature to scale-like foliage that ranges from light green to dark green or even blue-ish. It has red-brown bark and dark blue berry-like cones.
9. 9. Western juniper (J. occidentalis): Native to the western United States, this juniper has needle-like leaves and blue-brown, berry-like cones.

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