abebob

My Procumbens is getting dry tips and some of the foilage looks very weak compared to other areas...

What do you think? Dead? Alive? Somewhere in between?

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M.B.

Hmm, wish I was the one to ask, but unfortunately I'm terrible with junipers. In the first picture I was going to ask how long ago the big branch was wired, because it just looks like damage from wiring. After looking at the others, I'm just not sure.
How long have you had this tree? How long ago was it repotted? Was this tree worked on (trimmed/pinched) recently? Procumbens do turn a different color in the winter but the tips shouldn't be turning brown unless they were just trimmed with scissors, then they will brown up pretty quickly.
Mary B.

cyclops

id wonder the same thing i got a small young juniper for free and was a lil hesitant also the soil was crappy so i repotted it today in some sphagnum moss meanwhile while waiting to get new soil but i noticed alot of the roots were really black very few were nice and fresh and was wondering if its a sign that it could be dead cuz ive been told junipers keep there color weeks after dieing

thanks

Phil

Junipers and many evergreens take a long time before they show that they are dead. One test would be to scratch the bark and see if it still shows some green. Other than that if it is not dead it surely looks like its on the road there.

~Phil~

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M.B.

Cyclops, You repotted into sphagnum? Why? and only to repot again when you have proper soil? If there were a bunch of black roots, your juniper is in deep trouble already. You don't want to keep messing with the roots of a stressed plant. Also, it can take months for a juniper to finally die, especially if there are some black and some normal roots. I've found that they just slowly decline, never putting on fresh growth, slowly turning brown until they crisp.
Mary B.

cyclops

mhmm well sphagnum is a sufficient medium instead of soil and hold water great just need to fertilize it and i am not meaning to repot any time soon i was going to repot late spring with soil after some of my others flower
ya im guessing its done for but on the mean time it still looks pretty nice and a healthy looking green ill do the scratch test but thats what i get for a free tree
oh well

M.B.

Cyclops, no need to do the scratch test if it still looks healthy and green. Save that for if or when you start to see branches slowly turning light green colored, then brown.
Mary B.

treebeard55

Abebob, if it were mine I'd be concerned but not yet ready to prepare a funeral.

Does it get much wind? Wind can desiccate anything pretty bloody quickly.

My advice is to move it to a sheltered spot, out of any wind. I'd avoid direct afternoon sun, too, but still keep it outside until spring: these are hardy plants. Keep the soil moist, but don't overwater! A bit of dryness during winter does less harm when soggy roots.

You might also want to spray the foliage, trunk and branches with a 20-to-1 dilution of lime sulfur, to kill any bugs and bug eggs. If you do that, spread a plastic sheet over the soil; you don't want the LS to get to the roots.

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cyclops

ya they all have a nice dark green but some do have browning at the base near the branch

abebob

Ok, now that its nearing the end of January and things have heated up a bit, the Juniper above seems to look a lot better- the foliage seems to be more open and looking more healthy. Haven't really changed anything from what I was doing before, still gets about 4 hours of sun a day, it has been raining about twice a week and getting pretty soaked, so I havent been watering much.

My new question is this- there seems to be some new bright green foliage growing near the base of the previously decrepit looking foliage, on some of my other junipers as well- not a whole lot, just a few sprouts here and there that stand out. Is late January too early for this to be happening? it has been pretty warm here, (50's in the day, high 30's at night)- should I try to keep my junipers a little colder (like on the north side of the house, until spring starts?