For the formation of a juniper crown in a bonsai style, not all types of plants are suitable, but such a houseplant really has unusual beauty. With proper care, the shrub grows steady, with a strong and powerful trunk.
Plant features
Juniper has good resistance to frost, so in the southern latitudes this outlandish bush can be grown in the garden or in the country. Only for the winter it needs to be covered with special material.
Juniper bonsai is very demanding on lighting and humidity in the room. It is necessary to put the pot in a well-lit place.
Juniper Bonsai - A Spectacular Indoor Plant
What types are suitable for creating a bonsai
To create a bonsai-style tree from juniper, only some types of plants are suitable:
- Bonsai from Cossack juniper. Sabina, or the Cossack species of juniper grows as a creeping shrub, therefore, it is easily fed to the formation. In indoor conditions, its length reaches about 1.5 meters, and in natural conditions up to 5 meters.
- Scaly Juniper Bonsai. This type of plant also has a height of 1.5 meters. But the needles have a denser and more rigid texture than other species. The tree itself is blue in color, which makes it very popular in landscape design.
- Juniper bonsai. This species has weeping and dwarf varieties. The plant is compact in size and does not grow much, so he rarely needs to trim and form a crown.
- Rock juniper bonsai. The plant belongs to creeping shrubs. It is compact in size and convenient for growing indoors. Such shrubs need pruning too infrequently.
- Virginia Juniper Bonsai. The advantage of this type of plant is its drought tolerance. It grows well in the southern latitudes, but does not take root in open ground in the northern regions.
Juniper Bonsai Seeds
To grow juniper at home in order to further form it as a bonsai plant, seeds will be required. They can be purchased in specialized stores or online stores. It is worth choosing planting material from sellers with good ratings and reviews. Each seed should not have any defects, and you can purchase infected goods from an unscrupulous seller.
Plant seeds are best obtained from trusted sellers, so as not to meet with scammers.
Bonsai care at home
Caring for a bonsai-style juniper shrub is not as difficult as it might seem, but some efforts need to be made.
Care Tips
The main thing in caring for the bush is the regularity of all activities and following simple rules. Do not allow temperature drops and lower air humidity. Top dressing and watering is also carried out according to a certain regime, fertilizers are applied in the required dosage.
Location
The shrub should be in a place open to the sun. Recommended daylight hours - at least 6 hours.
For planting a plant in the garden, it is recommended to choose open areas
Watering rules and soil composition
The soil may dry out slightly, but the next necessary watering is carried out if the earth is dry to a depth of 3 cm.
Important! Irrigation with tap water is undesirable; it is better to let it stand a little. Cold liquid is also harmful.
The soil should be loose, so you should sometimes slightly loosen it. The main thing is to do this procedure carefully so as not to damage the rhizome.
Formation
The advantage of the juniper is that its trunk is inflexible, so it can be formed with ordinary wire. During winding up the shoots, it is worthwhile to remove unnecessary and obstructing stems. The remaining branches are tilted and fixed horizontally.
Note! It is necessary to avoid rounding of shoots and ingrowth of wire into the structure of the trunk of juniper.
Trunk Circle Care
Growing bonsai involves caring for the trunk circle. This is done to avoid infections and rotting of the bush. Be sure to loosen the soil so that air can flow to the roots and moisture does not stagnate.
Pruning leaves and branches
First of all, you need to remove the grown leaves, which are much larger than the rest of the leaves. Small foliage looks beautiful when decorating bonsai-style garden trees. Do the pruning procedure in spring or summer.
Foliage is trimmed in the spring or summer season
Top dressing
They feed the bush infrequently, but it is worth doing this periodically through the same period of time. In winter, during the dormant period for the plant, the procedure is stopped. For the healthy growth and development of the bush, one feeding a month is enough.
Juniper Fertilizer
The first top dressing after winter awakening is carried out by organics, you can dissolve it in water. In spring and early summer, nitrogen-containing fertilizers are needed, they help build a lush green mass.
Additional Information. In autumn, the nitrogen content can be reduced and plant fed with complex mineral fertilizers intended for juniper bushes. The last top dressing before going to rest is also carried out by organics.
Winter preparations
If you plant a plant in open ground, then it will have to be covered for the winter. You can wrap spanbond, the main thing is that the material is not very dense.
Bonsai Design Tips
To get a symmetrical bonsai from juniper, you need to constantly monitor the development of the bush and periodically wire up the direction of growth of its trunk with a wire. Experts do not recommend starting to trim the bush long before the full formation of the trunk. This will be superfluous work, and the plant does not like increased attention.
Shrubs rust is primarily reflected in the needles
Juniper bonsai diseases and pests
Diseases rarely affect the bush, but there is a possibility of rust of leaves, root rot or powdery mildew. All problems are primarily reflected in the foliage, so it’s easy to notice the signs. The main cause of disease is too abundant watering of the plant. If diseases are detected, the damaged parts of the juniper are removed, and the plant itself is treated with antifungal agents. Sometimes you have to transplant the bush into new soil.
Important! Of the pests, aphids, caterpillars and scale insects can cause inconvenience. The first sign of their appearance is a wilting bush. With a small number of pests, the needles of the plants are treated with a soap solution. With extensive damage, you can fight only with insecticides.
Juniper Chinese bonsai is a beginner in Russian gardens and homes. Planting this shrub implies a certain attention and care. Despite the fact that the plant does not like frequent intervention during cultivation, measures should be taken regularly, according to a schedule and taking into account the necessary rules. Bonsai will pay for all the efforts of gardeners with its unique decorative look.
