May 4. 1912. THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE 



355 



1 

 4 



ORNAMENTAL JUNIPERS. 



The junipers as a body are less popular 

 for gaivien planting than several other 

 families of conifei^, yet the gepus includes 

 a number of decorative speeies, in addition 

 to several varieties which are distinctly 

 ornamental by reason of their glaucous, sil- 

 very or golden foliage. The comparative 

 disfavour in which junipers are held owes 

 its origin, no doubt^ to the fact that there 

 are many gardens, even in the <'ountryj 

 where they fail to grow satisfactorily^ while 

 in the vicinity of towns, more especially 

 smoky towns, they are often a comj^lete 

 failure. On the other hand, there are nu- 

 merous places where they grow quite well, 

 and create a good impression, but it is al- 

 ways as well to caiTy out a little experimen- 

 tal planting before launching upon an am- 

 bitious scheme. 



Junipers may be expected to thrive upon 

 chalky soil, and the common Juniperus 

 communis is to be seen growing freely in a 

 wild state about some parts of the Chiltern 

 Hills. On the other hand, luxuriant 

 growth is made by certain kinds on peaty 

 soil in the neighbourhood of Woking, there- 

 fore one particular kind of soil is not an 

 all-important factor ; a clear, pure atmo- 

 sphere is, however, essential to success, and 

 one rarely meets with any but miserable ex- 

 amples where the opposite is the case. 



The Chinese Juniper (Juniperiis chinen- 



sis) is one of the most popular kinds for 

 general planting. The better examples 

 form shapely pyramidal trees, with green 

 or glaucous-green foliage of two kinds. 

 Juvenile branches may bear leaves to 

 inch long, but, on the older shoots they are 

 scale-like^ and arranged closely together. 

 Several distinct varieties are known, 

 those with glaucous, gold, or variegated 

 leaves being considered the most valuable. 

 Glauca, Pfitzeriana, and Smithi are conspi- 

 cuous by reason of glaucous or bluish foli- 

 age, aurea (sometimes called J. japonica 

 aurea), on account of its golden leaves, and 

 variegata for its variegated leaves. The 

 latter shrub^ however, cannot be considered 

 of such general use as the others, for the 

 variegation is not constant, but occurs as 

 patches of silvery leaves here and there, so 

 giving the plant a diseased appearance. A 

 good avenue of Juniperus chinensis is to be 



found in Ashridge Gardens in Hertford- 

 shire. 



The Greek Juniper (J, excelsa) provides 

 a pretty pyramidal shrub in the variety 

 stncta. It is well worth attention from 

 people who like compact, pillar-like plants. 



Whea seen in good condition, J. pachy- 

 phlsea, which grows in a natural state 

 about the shore region of the Mediterra- 

 nean, forms a small, handsome tree with 

 glaucous foliage. The accompanying illus- 

 tration directs attention to one of a number 

 of seedlings, which have recently been ex- 

 hibited by Messrs. G. and A. Clark, Lim., 

 of Dover, which have this desirable leaf 

 colourmg developed to a higher degree than 

 the type. The subject of the illustration 

 nas l)een given the varietal name of elegan- 

 tissima. Another showy variety of the same 

 set IS named conspicua. These were intro- 

 duced from the mountains of Arizona and 

 are quite hardy, and thrive in all soils. 



Ihe Common Savin (J. Sabina) is a useful 

 '^Urub for covering banks in those places 

 ^^nere jumpers thrive, for its dense habit 



IS specially so with^humilis, procumbens, 

 prostrata. and Kr^c^r^ ,.0^;^+,. all of 



^™^^_^a, and Knap Hill variety, 

 wnich have more or less glaucous leaves; 

 ne variety procumbens is known as the 



re^^ ^^^^ Juniper, and it is curious by 

 ^on of the foliage turning to a bronzy- 



] urplo hue on the approach of winter, re- 

 verting to its green or bluish-green colour 

 towards the end of spring. All these kinds 

 grow but a_foot or two high. 



J. spherica glauca is another kuid recog- 

 nised by its stiff, upright habit and bluisli- 

 green foliage. 



The Red Cedar or Pencil Cedar (J. vir- 

 giniana) forms a small tree with small scale- 

 like c:reen leaves presised closelv together 



leaves. The type may grow from 4 to G 

 feet high, but there are several alpine forms 

 which are quite low-growing shrubs. Al- 

 piiia aurea and aurea are showy varieties 

 with golden leaves ; fastigiata grows into a 

 compact narrow pillar with rather glau- 

 cous foliage, and glauca is recognised by its 

 blui&li leas es, but ha« the habit of the type. 



A juniper whicli is sometimes seen in very 

 good condition is often calle<l J. canadensis 



as in many of the smaller-leaved junipers, aui-ea ; this, however, is said to be strictly 



1 



juNirERrs rAciivriiL.KA i-Li-cAxrissniA. 



An attractive glaucous-leaved form, siiitahh' for the rock garden, recently exhibited by 



Messrs. G. and A. Clark, Dover. 



Prolific in varieties, these are usually dis- 



+li^ir nmlnnrefl f(t!iaire. Be<l- 



a low-growing form of the Chinese juniper. 



guished 



Kew. 



W, Dallimore. 



ana 



fordiana, elegantissima, glauca, Kcsten- 



, pvramidalis glauca, and Smithi pen- 



dula have glaucous leaves, and argentea, 

 aureo-spica, and aureo-variegata have a 

 variegated appearance, silver or gold 

 patches appearing here and tliere. 



The Common Junii>er (J. communis) is 

 easily separatetl from the Savin by its 

 looser habit and longer, sharp-pointed 



Azale^i Hexe.— During the present 

 season this pretty little azalea has continued 

 to make headway in popular favour, and it 

 is now grown in many trade establishments 

 in immense numbers. It was originally raised 

 bv the late Mr. Otto Forster over thirty years 

 ago, by crossing Azalea amoena with one of 

 the larffe-flowered Indian section.— T. 



