Question about Juniper berries

Assuming I have a young (three yr. old) Juniper, how many years or growing seasons does it take for the tree to produce berries for identification purposes?

If it's male, you could be waiting forever ;-)

Otherwise, probably 5-10 years before it produces any cones.

Resin

5-10 years...hmm, that's an awful long wait but, forever is even longer. Resin, can you identify a conifer without fruit? This specimen has beautiful peeling bark, not like the typical shredded look in older Junipers. I'd say it peels in a more sheet like fashion. Perhaps the bark looks very different with maturity.

Unfortunately the peeling bark is just a juvenile character - it won't necessarily continue to do so throughout its life (a few junipers do retain peeling bark throughout their lives, but the only commonly planted one of these - Juniperus squamata - has very different foliage).

The most likely species for yours are J. virginiana and J. chinensis.

Resin

That's a shame, the tree will grow out of it's current bark stage...lol, it's going to devolve. I'm 90 percent sure the tree is J. virginiana and it's going to grow up to be 60' tall (too close to the house).

Oh well, at least I got to enjoy it for three years...I'll have a chat with the birds and give them a more reasonable list of varieties to plant in my yard. Thanks for your assistance Sir!

The J. virginiana growing in a park near me haven't gotten very tall in the 20 years since they were planted. Granted, they received no fertilizer or supplemental water.

Here are some photos of a J. virginiana planted in the 1992-93 timeframe. For scale purposes, I'm almost positive the fence is 6' tall: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1343054/#post_9719123.

J. virginiana or J. chinensis, also planted 20 years ago - I didn't get branches to compare as VV suggested: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1343056/#post_9719129. For scale purposes, the fence to the right surrounds a tennis court. For you, Mipii, I'll go measure the fence if you'd like!

Perhaps you could prune the roots to keep them small.

By the way, I LOVE the leaf color and texture contrasts in photo # 1.

This message was edited Dec 12, 2013 12:00 PM

This message was edited Dec 12, 2013 12:12 PM

Thanks Muddy, I thinks there's about 5 different plants in that photo but it had a close-up of J. virginiana. I was hoping for a smaller so I could keep it. If I wait to dig it up in 5 - 10 years it will be too big and harder to save. If I can't keep it I'll just pot it up and give it away (have to check and see if it has a taproot first).

Thanks for your help, the fence does look about 6' tall, no need to go measure it...but thanks, that was a SWEET offer!

What is the plant in the foreground in photo one - the one with the reddish leaves?

I guess you've decided you don't want to prune your J. virginiana; I can't blame you there!
Sometimes we just have to realize that we planted the wrong plant, or the right plant in the wrong place. Like Sally, who decided her Elderberry wasn't earning its keep, I'm on the verge of deciding that a Rose of Sharon shrub in my yard that is occupying valuable real estate might need to be uprooted and (hopefully) given away.

I don't know why so many people love Rose of Sharon H. syriacus. Too many volunteers, too plain/ugly other than the flowers in summer. Muddy, join me in my anti ROS league. *

*Allowed to keep one per yard. I have one, cuz it is pink, and I usually only see lavender or white as volunteers.

Mipii, I hope you have a spot 'out back' to put that ; maybe it will turn out as female, and even if male, it's winter shelter and pollen.

They're easy to prune when young but get tougher when they reach 25-30'.

The plant in front is Hibiscus 'Kopper King', here's the 12' bloom on that baby...

Sally, I'm guessing people like the ROS because they're a reliable bloomer from spring to fall...and they're easy.

I just planted one in my backyard this fall. I'm hybridizing Hibiscus and may even tackle ROS if I get any bright ideas on a direction to go in for improving it's desirability. They are a mainstream shrub though, I can certainly understand a certain disdain for commonplace...like Privets and Forsythias.

Sadly, there's no shrub graveyard 'out back' that I can relegate it to, I'll either have to buy more property or give it to a good home. I will replace it with another conifer and add one more evergreen specimen to my front yard (maybe Holly).

Beautiful, Mipii.

Years ago, I planted a light pink Rose of Sharon in a mixed border to provide quick screening after we cut down a Bradford Pear. While I wasn't looking, a lavender one started to grow next to it. I think it was a volunteer pollinated by a neighbor's plant. The seedlings were a pain until this year, when I realized a thicker layer of pine bark mulch would prevent the seeds from sprouting. The hummingbirds love the flowers.
The one I might get rid of is a double-flowered one; no good to hummingbirds or pollinators.

Muddy, I've been trying to attract more hummers and planted a few new specimens to entice them. I love seeing them, they're so friggin fast they'll feast a foot away from me without fear. I'm the one that freezes.

I just winter sowed a bunch of perennials, vine and shrub seeds, one of them was a double flowering ROS I got from a really great trader on DG, I sure hope mine gets wildlife attention. Maybe it all depends on what else you have on the buffet.

It's priceless to get other peoples experiences, thoughts and preferences. I collect seeds so not too much chance for volunteers. Sally is right, there are a lot of Rose of Sharon lovers.

Sally, what's your favorite shrub?

If you must have Hibiscus syriacus, but don't want excess seedlings infesting your property - or worse, the property of others...

You should be planting one of the sterile hybrids introduced by the US National Arboretum. Like yourselves, they are named after Greek goddesses.

○'Aphrodite' - Clear pink, heavily ruffled; prominent dark red eye spot

○'Diana' - Pure white, waxy, heavy-textured, wide-spreading, ruffled

○'Helene' - White, heavily ruffled; red eye spot

○'Minerva' - Lavender with traces of pink overlay toward the center and reverse of petals; dark red eye spot

See here:

http://www.usna.usda.gov/Newintro/hibiscus.pdf
http://www.usna.usda.gov/Newintro/diana.html

Edited to add flower/color descriptions...

This message was edited Dec 13, 2013 8:50 AM

ho hum
They all look the same to me!

My favorite shrub??? oh geeze…..

VV, what a charmer you are. I never knew there was a Muddy Greek goddess; those white outfits always looked so.... white!.

I forgot that I actually do have a 4th ROS. I have no idea what cultivar it is, but it has lavender single blooms that are supposed to be blue. Like every other supposedly blue-flowering plant growing in my only slightly acidic soil, it's only blue if I dump much more than the recommended amount of aluminum sulfate around it.

I like my ROS because they grow very quickly and provide screening during the summer months when I most want it. Also, they are easy to grow, with the exception of the above ROS which for some reason had disease issues. It does not produce seedlings, so perhaps it is a sterile hybrid that is less disease-resistant.

Mipii, I read that bees, butterflies and hummingbirds cannot reach the pollen/nectar in double-flowered blooms. I'm looking at the picture on the tag that came with my Hibiscus syriacus 'Peoniflora', and I can see why it would be impossible for them to do so. I probably would leave it if I did not know someone who probably will love to have it.

Sally, no worries, I'm not becoming a ROS-advocate, but this photo shows some of their advantages. This row of shrubs was planted when my only criteria were 1) cheap, 2) fast-growing and 3) something that could be removed and possibly re-planted if need be because it would be growing over a water main easement area.

From left to right in my yard, the "shrubs" are a 'Natchez' crape myrtle, ROS #1, Hamamelis vernalis and behind that, ROS #2, and last a Forsythia....all much nicer to look at than my neighbors' house even though all of the flowers are on their side, my side being much too shady.

Although barely visible, I planted 3 Itea virginica 'Henry's Garnet' shrubs under the current "shrubs" a few months ago to hide my fence. They were not happy last year, but hopefully will perk up next year when they'll get much more sun.

This message was edited Dec 13, 2013 7:29 PM

I really like Itea virginica 'Henry's Garnet', I finally got a start from another trade with a DGer. I was looking for it to replace my Barberry. I'm excited to get it growing -- great foliage color. I'm not crazy about Barberry thorns but will tolerate them in other species that have more to offer, like Blackcap Raspberry.

Nice mature shrubs Muddy, all of them will appreciate your treat of 'more sun'. BTW, you've got a beautiful fence, it looks like tongue and groove.

VV, I'm liking 'Diana', like the ruffled petals and the fact there is no red eye. Have you ventured out to check on your shrubs? Are they still ice laden?

Thanks, Mipii. The company called my fence "board and batten". I call it "deer barrier"!

Board and Batten fits, that's an old term for how they used to clad houses before the advent of aluminum/vinyl siding.

It is so nice not to have deer in my back yard !

Sally, I agree that it's hard to pick just one favorite shrub or tree when most of the ones in our yards have appealing qualities. It's hard to do even this, but if I had to pick just one favorite for various categories, mine would be:
flowers: a white azalea that lights up my dreary winter backyard view;
form: a Japanese maple with a wonderfully-trained trunk;
foliage: that same JM in the fall;
function: a boxwood that harbors several catbird broods every year.




This message was edited Dec 14, 2013 11:33 AM