“Jupiters & Yous”

Guess what! We sell these! I don’t care how you say ‘em or spell ‘em as long as your check clears. I’m pretty sure my boss would agree with me. Hardly a day goes by that we don’t get contractor lists of hybridized and spell-’em-as-you-hear-’em names. I personally love the challenge! And yes, we do sell junipers - and yews.

In particular, Christensen’s sells a number of species of upright Junipers, the Eastern Redcedar. They are somewhat interchangeable with Arborvitae. Junipers require and tolerate hot, dry, sunny conditions but can have difficulties in poorly drained areas. They can be planted as backdrop accent evergreens or hedged into a living fence. A caveat is to avoid planting them too close to some members of the Rose family such as Crabs, Pears, Hawthorn, and Quince due to host/parasite rust occurrences.

The species of Juniperus that Christensen’s typically stocks are:

J. virginiana

• ‘Keteleer’ - a soft, green needle with loose habit; often used for native plantings
• ‘Taylor’ - a newer introduction with a bluish-green, tight habit; similar in form to Thuja occ. ‘Emerald Green’

J. chinensis

• ‘Blue Point’ - a bluish-green, full habit; often used for topiary
• ‘Hetz Columnaris’ - green needles with broad, architectual habit; best of the fruiting varieties we stock
• ‘Spartan’ - a green needled variey with a tight, upright habit

J. scopulorum (Rocky Mountain Junipers)

• ‘Blue Arrow’ - a soft, bluish upright with a very tight form
• ‘Skyrocket’ -a grayish, green variey similar in form to ‘Blue Arrow’
• ‘Wichita Blue’ - a broad, very blue form with very soft growth, but a rugged look

Availability for this genus is not quite as reliable as Arborvitae. We usually see periodic waves of uprights appear throughout the season. Junipers do, however, offer a greater range of color when compared to Arborvitae.

Next time you need an upright evergreen, ask to see some of the varieties just mentioned. Exact spelling not required!