juniper trouble

4 junipers were in our yard when we moved in. 17 years ago they were small bushes now they are trees. I live in Phoenix Arizona. For the last few years they have become browner shedded alot more that usual and don't look very good. If you look at my pictures you can see they are a focal point of the back yard and loseing them would be a disaster. does anyone know what to do?

Hi udoshia :) You might want to pose / post this question in the Trees and Shrubs forum :) Nice to meet you !

Dea

Go ahead and post one of your photos over here in a follow-up message.

In the meantime:
1. What species of junipers are they?
2. Native to your area?
3. Wild or planted?
4. Are they becoming shaded by the growth of adjacent trees?
5. Has the soil moisture changed due to drainage, pavement, or irrigation?
6. Have you checked for Phomopsis blight, mites, etc.?
7. How are you managing the surrounding area? Turf?

Guy S.

I am going to take a branch to the nursery and find out the name. I posted the photos. I'll have more info tomorrow.

O.K. I know what the problem is. The trees are planted in a raised area in the backyard that runs the width of the yard. the raised bed is 4 feet deep and 8 feet wide. There are air pockets all over the place. The reason I know this is because I used a deep watering rod and I hit air frequently. So now I have to figure out how to fill in air pocket without disturbing expensive trees. One orange tree, two grapefruit and one lemmon, as well as the 3 juniper trees. Most of these trees are at least 15 years established. Any suggestions?

I wonder if your air pockets are from mole or gopher activity, or perhaps from a leaking drainage tile that is washing out the subsoil, or from decaying logs or debris buried under the mound? I would not expect air pockets to remain in place for years without collapsing, unless something is keeping them open.

Guy S.

I can't imagine it being drainage because we are talking Phoenix and it never rains. Everything is watered by drip irrigation on the top of the soil.Until about 2 years ago it was held up by railroad tiles that after 20 years finally rotted so My husband took out the ties and put in stacking block. It would not be usual for him to check the soil during the process. The rotting rail road ties were causing erosion over the years.
I never thought about there probably being a collapse by now.
As far as debris I doubt it because My husband keeps the outside clean as if it were the inside. On the other side of the bed there is a block wall that holds the dirt in and I have noticed for a few years the mortor missing in places.
I asked My husband about it and he said the last guy that planted a tree told him he was very worried about air pockets but it was not really discussed.
In one area we have tried to grow a good orange tree but they don't grow they just stay the same as the day they were planted. This our 3rd try in 18 years. The greatfruit tree is really healthy and growing strong for the last 15 years and the lemmon just began to grow and look well after nursing it for 15 years. The 3 junipers were great until this year and they look like they are just hanging in after 18 or 20 years. A few weeks ago I climbed up there and dumped bags of mulch on top after scratching the surface.
I guess I could pay someone to come out and do a study but I have never been sucessful with that. I did that once before when the livingroom tile and front wall of the house started to crack. They said it was the roots of a old, huge, beautiful ficus tree in the front yard and believe me old, huge, beautiful trees in Phoenix are hard to come by. We took out the tree and the house kept breaking. It ended up to be a vine growing on the outside wall. When we took it down the wall shifted back in place. (Sort of)
I guess the problem is trying to keep 4 feet of dirt just so when it is held up only by block walls on both sides.

Maybe it's something unrelated to any soil pockets, if they've been fine until now. Hard to tell from 1000 miles away. Hopefully someone else will chime in here soon with more ideas.

Guy S.

This message was edited Dec 5, 2005 11:43 AM