Conifers today have earned great popularity among the owners of garden plots. Moreover, low-growing crops are most in demand, which can be found even in a small area. If you are looking for such a plant for planting, pay attention to the juniper Andorra Variegata, acquaintance with which will certainly not leave you indifferent.

Botanical Description

Juniper Andorra Variegata is a compact evergreen coniferous shrub. Despite its small height, rarely exceeding 50 cm, the plant is able to become a bright element of landscape design due to the colorful and colorful colors of the needles. The crown of the shrub is rosette-like, greenish-brown shoots grow from the center in the horizontal direction, forming a pillow-shaped shape with a diameter of up to 1.5 m.

Thick decorative needles are characterized by a rich green color, which is successfully diluted with creamy white spots. By winter, the plant changes color, acquiring a violet-purple color. In August - September, small spherical fruits are formed on the shoots - cones resembling berries. At first they are green, but over time they acquire a gray-blue hue with a tar coating.

The described variety has another variety - Andorra Compact. It is also a low creeping shrub with a pillow-shaped crown, but its diameter does not exceed 1 meter. The needles are saturated green in the warm season, and autumn changes its color to lilac-purple.

Did you know? In the 16th century, a scientist from Austria, Franciscus Silvius, invented the first medicine based on juniper, which today we know as gin.

Landing

Juniper planting is recommended in late April or May. Planted at this time, the plant will take root well, consuming sufficient heat and moisture. Before landing, it is important to choose a good site. It is advisable to immediately think about whether it will be a single planting, hedge or arranging a flower bed to properly position the plant, because it transfers the transplant rather painfully.

Seedling preparation

It is recommended to buy planting material in specialized nurseries or garden centers, choosing specimens 3-4 years old. Carefully inspect the seedling - the branches of the plant should have a healthy appearance without signs of wilting and rot.

An earthen lump must be preserved - this will serve as a guarantee of good survival of the bush. Access of fresh air to bare roots can lead to the death of the plant.

Site selection and preparation

Decorative needles of juniper require good lighting, so the site needs to be selected appropriate. A small partial shade is also allowed. In dense areas, shrubs will often hurt. Pay attention to soil moisture - it should not be swampy, as this will also lead to negative consequences.

Juniper Andorra Variegata requires soil preparation - it must be breathable and fertile. To do this, mix peat, garden soil and sand in a ratio of 2: 1: 1.

Important! Juniper should not be planted next to stone fruits, as they can become rusty from a coniferous plant.

Landing process

The step-by-step landing process will look like this:

1. Dig a landing hole. Its depth should be about 70 cm, and its width should be about 2 times greater than the size of the rhizome with an earthen lump. If you plan to plant several bushes, keep a distance of about 1.5–2 m between them, and keep a shorter distance in the hedge — approximately 0.5–1 m.
2. Pour drainage of sawdust or gravel about 15 cm thick onto the bottom.
3. Fill the pit with a third of the prepared soil mixture.
4. Fertilize. It is best to use the universal composition of Nitroammofoski. For one landing, add 200-300 g.
5. Position the seedling so that the root neck is above the soil.
6. Fill the pit with the remaining nutrient soil.
7. Abundantly water the planting, spending 10-15 liters of water (preferably settled).
8. Mulch the soil with sand, sawdust or wood chips.

Juniper Care

Although the plant is not particularly demanding, it is better to provide it with the most suitable conditions so that the shrub is decorative. The rules of agricultural technology are quite simple and come down to regular watering, top dressing, loosening and pruning of unsuitable shoots.

Watering

During the first week after planting, the juniper must be watered daily, spending up to 10 liters of water in one procedure. Further, watering is reduced, and in rainy weather it is completely stopped. The culture is drought tolerant, but it does not tolerate dry air. In hot weather, moistening is required by sprinkling, which should be carried out in the evening.

Top dressing

Top dressing begins to be applied the next year after planting. In spring, fertilizers are applied in April and May, when the buds begin to swell. During this period, it is useful to feed the bushes with superphosphate, ammonium nitrate, or you can use complex mineral compounds, such as Agrekol (30 g per 1 bush).

Fertilizers are introduced into the near-stem circle to a depth of about 10 cm, indenting 15 cm from the trunk itself, then water the plants with water.

In summer, fertilizers are needed that favorably affect the decorative needles and increase its resistance to climate change. You can use liquid fertilizer "Magnificent needles", which is used not only for root dressing, but also for spraying the crown.

• The universality of the drug lies in the fact that it performs several functions at once:
• creates favorable conditions for the development and nutrition of the root system;
• improves the decorative needles;
• fights phytopathogenic microorganisms.

Important! Do not use fresh manure as a juniper fertilizer — he can burn the roots of the plant.

With foliar treatment, 30 ml in 1.5 l of water are diluted on one bush and the plant is sprayed with a solution. For root dressing, 100 ml of the drug is diluted in 5 l of water. In preparation for winter, fertilizer is recommended "Autumn" for conifers. One bush consumes up to 20 g of the product. It can be evenly applied to the soil and poured with water, or a solution (18 g per 5 l) can be pre-treated and the soil treated.

Loosening and mulching

Loosening should be carried out regularly, combining it with watering. However, you need to dig the soil carefully, without going deeper than 10 cm, since the root system of the juniper is superficial. Loosening is especially useful for young plants. After the procedure, the soil becomes looser, resulting in good access to the roots of moisture and air.

Mulching the soil is an equally important procedure. Mulch is a protective layer that protects the roots from drying out, freezing and at the same time preserves a sufficient level of soil moisture in the trunk circle. The best material for sheltering coniferous soil is wood chips, fallen needles or peat chips. In landscape design sometimes use decorative multi-colored pebbles.

Pruning

Since the Andorra Variegata variety is represented by neat pillow-shaped bushes, they need molding pruning only if they are planted as hedges. The procedure is usually carried out in early spring. But throughout the growing season, juniper needs sanitary pruning.

In spring, you need to make sure that all shoots have wintered well. If there are broken, dry or frozen branches - they are removed. Further, shrubs are periodically inspected and pruned areas with signs of disease and drying. Places of cuts should be processed with potassium permanganate or garden var.

Winter preparations

Preparing juniper for winter comes down to simple procedures: pruning of shrunken, damaged shoots, weeding and loosening of the soil in the trunk circle is carried out. During these procedures, autumn top dressing is introduced.

Care must be taken to remove all plant debris from the site and burn it, as pathogens and insect pest larvae can remain overwintering in it. You should also carry out treatment for diseases.

Juniper is a frost-resistant plant that can withstand temperatures up to –34 ° C. For adult plants, it is enough to cover the soil with a mulching layer 10-15 cm thick. Young seedlings are covered with spruce branches or any non-woven material.

Possible diseases and pests

Such a weather-resistant shrub, such as juniper, can also become ill. Most often it is haunted by fungal diseases. It is important to be able to detect the disease in time and take the necessary measures.

Important! Shrubs must be treated in the evening or in cloudy weather, so that drops of chemicals do not cause needles burns in the sun.

The most dangerous are the following ailments:

1. Rust. The lesion is characterized by the formation of swelling on the branches - outgrowths of a bright orange color. The disease can progress for several years, accompanied by shedding needles. To get rid of the disease, you should cut off all visible damaged areas and treat the shrub with Skor or Vectra preparations.
2. Tracheomycosis - A widespread disease among conifers. Infection most often progresses with stagnation of water and soil compaction. Infection occurs through the root system, which suffers primarily, overgrown with light grayish spores. Gradually, the fungus passes to the trunk and branches of the plant. The dying off of shoots begins from the top and is accompanied by reddening of needles. The affected areas must be trimmed, the shrub itself and the soil under it must be treated with the Fitosporin or Maxim fungicides.
3. Schütte brown. The disease manifests itself gradually - first black fruit bodies appear on the needles (up to 1.5 mm), then the needles acquire a brown-brown color and crumble (“schutten” is translated from German as “crumble”). If you find signs of this ailment, you need to immediately cut off the dried branches, and treat the plant with the drug "Quadris", which effectively copes with fungal spores.

The most dangerous pests of juniper include: aphids, European scale insects, juniper moths and marble chives. One of these insect species is most often a sign of shrub population, twisting and drying of needles. They are fought with the help of pesticides, which process the crown, shoots and near-stem circle 2-3 times with an interval of 2 weeks. For these purposes, the means of "Aktar", "Bombardier", etc.

Did you know? Juniper needles release phytoncides into the surrounding atmosphere — substances that kill harmful bacteria.

To protect the juniper from the invasion of pests and fungal infections, it is necessary to carry out periodic treatments with fungicides and insecticides. The first procedures are carried out in early spring, before budding, then periodically repeat. The last time the bushes and the soil under them is cultivated in the fall, in preparation for the winter period. The combination drug "Ridomil Gold MC" helps well against diseases, and "Actellic" against insect pests.

Breeding methods

Reproduction of juniper Andorra Variegata can be carried out in several ways, namely:

1. Getting seedlings from seeds. Growing shrubs in this way - not the best way to breed. Firstly, this process is quite complex and lengthy, and secondly, a seedling grown from the seeds of a varietal culture does not take over its properties, both in aesthetic terms and in other characteristics, including winter hardiness, drought resistance, etc.
2. Cuttings. This is the most reliable way to grow a bush that is identical to the mother. Material is collected in April - May. To do this, break branches up to 15 cm long so that each of them has a piece of bark - the so-called five. The bottom of the cuttings must be 5-6 cm peeled from the needles, processed in a growth stimulator during the day. Cuttings are planted in a prepared soil from sand and peat, deepening by 2 cm, covered with a film on top. After 1.5-2 months, the cover can be removed, and seedlings need to be grown in a container at room temperature for another 2-3 years, after which they can be transplanted into the open ground.
3. Propagation by layering. Since the branches of the shrub are very close to the soil, sometimes they come into contact with it, take root and begin to sprout (after about a year). Such layering can be used for landing in a new place. The gardener can independently tilt the branches and fix them with studs to the ground. The place of fixation should be regularly watered and spud.

Use in landscape design

Juniper is one of the favorite plants of landscape designers. It is successfully used to create lawns - coniferous beds and mixborders, and also serves as a worthy decoration of rock gardens and rocky gardens. From the group of plants, you can arrange a neat, low hedge, which will separate a certain area or accompany the paths of the garden.

The horizontal creeping juniper Andorra Variegata is ideal for the concept of a rocky garden. Surrounded by exposed stones and low flowering plants, such as saxifrage or arabis, a coniferous specimen will stand out favorably, and the unusual color of its crown will add variety to the landscape.

Juniper bushes in mixborders will look no less impressive. As neighbors, you can choose several taller conifers, such as Silberlok fir or Pug pine, placing them in the background. For the foreground, it is better to take several flowering perennials. You need to select low plants that do not cover dwarf juniper. A good option is clematis, spells, marigolds.

Juniper Andorra Variegata - one of the best conifers for planting on a personal plot. Its picky character, endurance and excellent aesthetic qualities deserve a worthy place in any landscape composition.