Juniperus chinensis

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Juniperus chinensis

Chinese Juniper shoot, showing juvenile (needle-like) leaves, adult scale leaves, and young male cones

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Pinales
Family:	Cupressaceae
Genus:	Juniperus
Species:	J. chinensis

Binomial name

Juniperus chinensis
L.

Juniperus chinensis (Chinese Juniper, 龙柏) is a shrub or tree, very variable in shape, reaching 1-20 m tall. It is native to northeast Asia, in China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea and the southeast of Russia.

The leaves are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 5-10 mm long, and adult scale-leaves 1.5-3 mm long. Mature trees usually continue to bear some juvenile foliage as well as adult, particularly on shaded shoots low in the crown. It is largely dioecious with separate male and female plants, but some individual plants produce both sexes. The cones are berry-like, 7-12 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 2-4 seeds; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 2-4 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.

[edit] Cultivation and uses

It is a popular ornamental tree or shrub in gardens and parks, with over 100 named cultivars selected for various characters, such as yellow foliage (e.g. cvs. 'Aurea', 'Tremonia'), permanently juvenile foliage (e.g. cv. 'Shoosmith'), columnar crown shape (cv. 'Columnaris'), abundant cones (e.g. cv. 'Kaizuka'), etc. The cultivar 'Shimpaku' is a very important bonsai subject.

The hybrid between Juniperus chinensis and Juniperus sabina, known as Juniperus × pfitzeriana (Pfitzer Juniper, synonym J. × media), is also very common as a cultivated plant. It is only ever a shrub, never a tree, making it suitable for smaller gardens.