Juniperus chinensis
Chinese Juniper
Mature Size, Growth, Longevity
Average mature size is 50-60' tall and 15-20' wide, but cultivars are vastly more common in US landscapes, Great variation of size and shape, but this is normally an erect, narrow, conical tree. Slow to moderate growth rate.
Native Range
Species from China, Mongolia, and Japan. Introduced in 1767.
Flower and Fruit Details
Flowers are dioecious, male flowers yellow-brown to orange-yellow, start to show color and shed pollen in March/April. Female flowers greenish. Trees with flowers of both sexes occasionally occur. Since flowers are usually (but not always) dioecious, fruits normally occur only on female plants. Fruits in globose or oblong cones, 0.33 to 0.5 inch across, at first whitish blue bloomy, becoming dark brown when ripe. Two to five seeds per fruit.
Leaf and Bark Features
Evergreen: Two types of foliage: overlapping scales and very short (1/16-1/3"), pointed, needle-like awls. Trunk and main branches usually thin, gray-brown, lightly ridged-and-furrowed, shredding in thin strips, rarely scaling.
Culture and Care
Prefers moist, well-drained conditions, in full sun. pH adaptable, quite tolerant of calcareous soils. Tolerates dry soil once established. Zone 4-9. Avoid shade and wet, poorly-drained sites. Avoid overhead night watering to prevent diseases. Relatively trouble free, but Phomopsis and Kabatina tip blights sometimes occur, killing young shoots, usually in early spring or with wet weather or overhead night watering.
Strengths, Weaknesses, Other Facts
These are tough, durable, hardy evergreen landscape plants. Deer-resistant. Pollution-tolerant. Many of its cultivars are grown in all parts of the U.S. Good wildlife value. 4-season interest: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter. In the United States, the cultivars of this species are commonly found in landscapes, but the straight-species form is rarely grown.
Suggested Uses
Great landscape value as screens, hedges, and windbreaks.
Taxa and Plants of this Species at BCA
The following taxa are (or were) represented in the collections at Boone County Arboretum. Additional taxa may be available in the trade that are not included here.
Juniperus chinensis 'Armstrong' // Armstrong Chinese Juniper
Shrub. A dense, dwarf bush, growing to 3-4' tall and wide, occasionally wider. Branches spread horizontally. Bright green to gray-green or sage-green foliage, primarily scale-like, holding their color in cold weather, and soft to the touch except at the base. Cultivar introduced by Armstrong Nurseries in California in 1932, as a branch sport of a Pfitzer Juniper. Zones 3-9.
Bed 25Juniperus chinensis 'Blue Point' // Blue Point Chinese Juniper
Tree. Grows to 7-12' tall and 3-8' wide, can grow taller. Broad pyramidal/conical form with a teardrop outline, extremely dense, compact branching. Glowing, blue-green needle and scale-like foliage. Occasional problems with mildew. Zones 4-9. Makes a stately lawn specimen, or a good tall screen or hedge. Maintains natural form well with no pruning. Good for borders, erosion control, windbreak, or may be pruned into a topiary. Appropriate for use in Asian and Zen Gardens.
BT005355 - BT005356 - BT005357Juniperus chinensis 'Gold Lace' // Gold Lace Chinese Juniper
Shrub. Grows to 3-4' tall and 5-6' wide. This compact cultivar is the most golden of all junipers, with the foliage color coming from the center of plant outward. However, it does tend to lose its yellow color in the hottest summers of the South. This is a compact, Pfitzer-type juniper, 3-4' tall and 5-6' wide. Probably is the same plant as 'Pfitzeriana Gold Lace'. Good for foundation plantings or in shrub beds. Helps hold soil on slopes and embankments.
Bed 142Juniperus chinensis 'Hetz Columnaris' // Hetz Columnar Chinese Juniper
Tree. Grows to 10-20' (to 25') tall with an upright pyramidal form. FEMALE plant, with heavy production of small, gray-blue cones. Bright green to blue-green, scale and awl-shaped foliage. Resembles 'Keteleeri' Juniper. Cold hardy. Zones 3-9. Good for screening, or as a specimen. Holds foliage color well. Does well in containers. May also be used for topiaries, Asian gardens, Zen gardens, windbreaks, and privacy screens. Introduced in the 1940s by Fairview Nursery in Pennsylvania.
BT004870cJuniperus chinensis 'Holbert' // Holbert Chinese Juniper
Shrub. Low spreading plant to 2-3' tall and 8-10' wide. MALE plant, producing no cones. Low-spreading, bluish-green needles, long extended shoots almost parallel to ground. Good blue foliage color holds well through the winter. Very similar to 'Grey Owl' except that 'Holbert' is a male cultivar.
-- not currently in our collection --Juniperus chinensis 'Iowa' // Iowa Chinese Juniper
Tree. Loose pyramidal shape 10-15' or more tall, spreading to 4-9'. Has an erect, informal growth habit. Blue-green to gray-green foliage is awl-shaped and scale-like. Deer will feed on the foliage. Produces gray-blue cones. Zones 4-9. Selected at Iowa State University.
BT001816 - BT001817 - BT001818Juniperus chinensis 'Keteleeri' // Keteleeri Chinese Juniper
Tree. Grows to 12-20' tall, 4-7' wide, narrow to broadly conical-pyramidal tree with a stiff trunk & dense foliage. FEMALE plant, producing abundant, large globose cones (0.5-0.6" across) on a recurved stalk. Quick to begin fruiting. Cones are showy, initially grayish green finally glossy light to medium green. Light green to medium green or blue-green scale-like foliage. Ascending, upswept branches. Good specimen or hedge plant. First raised by Mr. Keteleer, nurseryman in Brussels, Belgium.
BT000173 - BT000174 - BT000175 - BT004730 - BT004740 - BT004760Juniperus chinensis 'Mac's Golden' // Mac's Golden Chinese Juniper
Tree. Grows 6-15' tall and 4-7' wide, in an upright, spreading, dense, pyramidal form. Needle and scale foliage, with soft yellow to bright yellow shoots, with bluish interior foliage. Some foliage is variegated with bands of white. Good as a hedge, or for screening or as a specimen. Cultivar introduced by Alexander Nursery in Mt. Clemens, Michigan.
BT004855 - BT004865Juniperus chinensis 'Monlep' // Mint Julep™ Chinese Juniper
Shrub. A compact, spreading, evergreen shrub to 4-6' tall with a greater width. Arching branches creating a low fountain-like form, brilliant mint green foliage. Resembles a very green compact version of a Pfitzer Juniper. Foliage is mostly scales. Good in rock gardens, mass plantings, as a foundation plant, topiary, ground cover or low hedge. Possibly same as 'Sea Green'. A FEMALE plant. Zones 3-9. Cultivar selected by Monrovia, 1971.
Bed 143Juniperus chinensis 'Nick's Compact' // Nick's Compact Chinese Juniper, Nick's Compact Pfitzer Juniper
Shrub. Grows to 3-5' tall and 6-8' wide, or larger, with a flat-topped, wide-spreading growth form and arching branches. MALE plant, producing no cones. Foliage is more needle than scale-like, green with a slight blue overcast. This may be the same plant as Juniperus 'Pfitzeriana Compacta'. Susceptible to Phomopsis blight. Zones 4-9. Good for mass plantings and commercial landscapes.
Bed 143 - Bed 162Juniperus chinensis 'Old Gold' // Old Gold Chinese Juniper, Armstrong Aurea Chinese Juniper
Shrub. Very compact grower to 3' tall, 4' wide. More compact than Pfitzer. Bronze-gold foliage color is retained in winter but may be lost in very hot summers in southern states. Possibly a branch sport of 'Armstrong', with the same growth habit. Good in rock gardens, foundation plantings, as a groundcover, or in a low hedge. Originated in the Netherlands.
Bed 24Juniperus chinensis 'Parsonii' // Parson's Chinese Juniper, Parsonii Chinese Juniper, Parson's Juniper
Shrub. Moderate growth rate, 2-3' tall and 8-9' wide. Creeping habit, great as a somewhat upright groundcover. Forms a low, wide-spreading mound of scaly, evergreen, blue-tinted foliage. Lush, beautiful and tough. Fine textured foliage holds color well in winter. FEMALE plant, so has small, blue fruits. Excellent heat tolerance. Prefers full sun, but tolerates some shade. Seldom damaged by deer. Good on slopes. Does well in difficult sites. Zones 4-8.
Bed 7Juniperus chinensis 'Perfecta' // Perfecta Chinese Juniper
Tree. An upright, narrow, pyramidal evergreen tree, 10-18' tall and 4-8' wide. A FEMALE plant, with small, blue-gray berries that attract songbirds. Good, dark-green foliage holds good color throughout the year. Best in full sun, but tolerates some shade. Tolerates rocky soil, drought and air pollution. This tree tends to branch primarily from one low point, off a large trunk with scaly, red-brown bark. Makes a good specimen, foundation plant or screen.
BT004840 - BT004850b - BT004860bJuniperus chinensis 'Pfitzeriana Gold Lace' // Pfitzer Gold Lace Chinese Juniper, Gold Lace Pfitzer Juniper
Shrub. Grows 3-4' tall and 5-6' wide, with a compact, broad spreading habit. Fine-textured foliage color is clean yellow throughout year becoming even brighter yellow in summer. Golden color holds in the center of the plant creating a more even golden color overall. Good in all seasons. Tolerates full sun to part shade. Great plant for foundation plantings, along fence lines, and in shrub beds, or on slopes and embankments for erosion control, or for rock gardens or low hedges.
Bed 25Juniperus chinensis 'San Jose' // San Jose Chinese Juniper
Shrub. Grows only 12-18" tall (sometimes to 2'), but spreads to 6-8' wide, with a creeping, irregularly spreading form. FEMALE plant, producing small, berry-like cones. Foliage is sage green, scale and needle-like mixed. Quite drought tolerant. Has problems with juniper tip blight diseases; otherwise, good foliage all year. Cultivar was selected in San Jose, CA. in 1935 by W.B. Clarke.
-- not currently in our collection --Juniperus chinensis 'Sea Green' // Sea Green Chinese Juniper
Shrub. Compact spreader with fountain-like branches, growing to 4-6' tall and 6-8' wide. More upright than the Pfitzer Juniper. FEMALE plant, producing small cones. Dark green foliage on arching branches, darkening in cold weather. Good as a hedge, or in rock gardens or foundation plantings. Susceptible to Phomopsis tip blight fungus, but resistant to cedar-apple rust. Do not water overhead in the evening.
Bed 142Juniperus chinensis 'Spartan' // Spartan Chinese Juniper
Tree.
BT002003Juniperus chinensis 'Trautman' // Trautman Chinese Juniper
Tree.
BT002041Juniperus chinensis var. procumbens 'Nana' // Dwarf Japgarden Juniper, Nana Japgarden Juniper
Shrub. Creeping, spreading habit, 6 inches to 2.5 feet tall (as the side branches mound one atop the other over many years) and 6-12' wide. Slow growth rate, may cover a 10' diameter area in 10 years. Forms a compact mat, with multiple layers of overlapping branches. Beautiful bluish-green foliage in full sun, becoming slightly purple in winter. MALE plant, producing no cones. Also listed as Juniperus procumbens 'Nana'.
Bed 13