Monday, December 23, 2013

Juniperus conferta 'Blue Pacific' is my favorite plant in the garden, this week…

I purchased my Blue Pacific Shore Juniper back in late 2010 and have been on the lookout for another one ever since.

Why? I love its meandering ways, it works its way around and through plantings, visually connecting them.

Plus its bright blue/green foliage with silver undersides always looks happy and fresh.

And I like the contrasting stems.

My search for another plant finally ended at Portland Nursery on Division St. last month.

Halleluiah! Plus this one has several growing tips so it should spread out in all directions.

Something I will need if my go-to plants for green meandering groundcover, Grevillea juniperina ‘Lava Cascade’ and G. juniperina ‘Molonglo’, continue their post-freeze decline…

Not that ‘Blue Pacific’ will ever get those great grevillea flowers of course, but it is hardy to USDA Zone 5!

The stats:
  • “a decumbent evergreen shrub that is native to certain sandy coastal areas of Japan and Sakhalin Island (Russia)” (source)
  • hardy in USDA Zones 5 -10
  • prefers full to partial sun and is tolerant of heat
  • medium to low water needs once established
  • grows to a maximum height of 1ft with a spread of 4-6ft

Here’s a nice description I found on the WSU Clark County Extension page: “Shore Juniper is a dense, ground hugging evergreen conifer that grows 12” tall but spreads out to 8’ across. The slender stems bear aromatic blue-green awl shaped needles which are one half inch long and are borne in fascicles of three. While the needles are soft to the touch they do have sharp points. Each needle has a single white band growing along its length. Mature plants bear female cones which are one half inch in diameter and silvery or bluish black with waxy bloom. Stems are slender and initially green. With time however they turn reddish brown.”

And a frightening quote pulled from the Monrovia description: “Dense blue green foliage gives this selection a handsome appearance and is best when left unsheared” what? Why would someone even consider shearing this plant?

Do you have a favorite plant in your garden this week? Please share it in the comments!

All material © 2009-2013 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

14 comments:

  1. Sweet little juniper! I love how the orangy-red stem picks up the red stems of the manzanita in the background.

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    1. That was totally unintentional but certainly did work out well!

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  2. I don't have a favorite this week, there's just too much dead and brown out there, I can't bear to look at it all too closely. I do like the look of this juniper though.

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    1. If you see one you should grab it Alison, it really is a fabulous plant. I saw one that was yellow rather than blue (and it was about as yellow as this is blue, in other words not much) and I was tempted, but decided to hold out for more of the same. Besides sometimes I end up thinking foliage with a yellow looks sickly.

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  3. I think the "best left unsheared" business is a hint to landscape maintenance companies who like to hack everything back to about a foot every year or so. That just maybe it might look better grown as it is, instead of cut to three or four stumpy branches.
    There's also the temptation, with junipers, to give them poodle cuts.

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    1. And following that reasoning do you think landscape maintenance companies actually read what the grower says about the plant? I don't know. They seem to generally think they've got it covered since they know how to use the power tools.

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  4. Your front yard looks great despite your recent bout with cold and snow! I should have known that you wouldn't let the holiday get in the way of your favorites post. I have to take a pass this week as I've been running about with holiday preparations today and have visitors tomorrow. Have a very merry Christmas!

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    1. Thankfully most of the big plants all look fabulous, just don't look too close at some of the smaller ones. I totally understand the holiday frenzy taking over. We're pretty calm around here so I figured I'd might as well stick with the program, after all not everyone is celebrating this holiday. I hope you have a wonderful holiday Kris!

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  5. I recall some ABQ plantings of 'Blue Pacific' by one of my, ahem, colleagues...need to see if they are still there. Their incredible growth habit is fun in your garden, and I remember them in Oklahoma back in the day! Warning about shearing...living in the butcher-everything-in-sight-belt, if it gets one homeowner to leave them alone, there might be hope against the "maintenance" hordes.

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    1. The way you describe the butchering and maintenance hordes sounds like a set up for a reality television show.

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  6. I love the contrasting stems, too. I wish Molonglo and Lava Cascade a speedy recovery. Maybe now that they have competition for their positions they'll gather their strength and pull through.

    Here is my favourite this week: http://crmbsgrdn.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/my-favourite-plant-this-week_24.html

    and a very Merry Christmas to you!

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    1. Ah yes, that's a thought! My Magnolia macrophylla didn't bloom until I started eyeing one at a nursery that had big fat buds on it. Perhaps the Grevillea juniperina will follow suit!

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  7. It surprises me you have been looking so long for this plant, it is considered a bread and butter landscape plant around here along with 'Blue Rug' and 'Procumbens Nana'. I am sure I would be surprised by what is considered common where you live.

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  8. How long will blue pacific juniper live?

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