Green Mound Juniper
Juniperus procumbens 'Green Mound'
Green Mound Juniper
Juniperus procumbens 'Green Mound'
How are the heights measured?
All tree, and nothin' but the tree! We measure from the top of the soil to the top of the tree; the height of the container or the root system is never included in our measurements.
What is a gallon container?
Nursery containers come in a variety of different sizes, and old-school nursery slang has stuck. While the industry-standard terminology is to call the sizes "Gallon Containers", that doesn't exactly translate to the traditional liquid "gallon" size we think of. You'll find we carry young 1-gallons, up to more mature 7-gallons ranging anywhere from 6 inches to 6ft.
How does the delivery process work?
All of our orders ship via FedEx Ground! Once your order is placed online, our magic elves get right to work picking, staging, boxing and shipping your trees. Orders typically ship out within 2 business days. You will receive email notifications along the way on the progress of your order, as well as tracking information to track your plants all the way to their new home!
Why are some states excluded from shipping?
The short & sweet answer is: "United States Department of Agriculture Restrictions." Every state has their own unique USDA restrictions on which plants they allow to come into their state. While we wish we could serve everyone, it's for the safety of native species and helps prevent the spread of invasive disease & pests. We've gotta protect good ole' Mother Nature, after all.
About Me
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The Green Mound Juniper is one of the very best ground-cover plants available. It is incredibly tough, growing in heat and cold, and tolerating drought and poor soil. It stays just a few inches tall, but it will in time cover an area up to 6 feet across. The tufted foliage is a beautiful soft blue-green to gray-green, blending perfectly into any garden. This plant is superb for preventing soil erosion and keeping weeds out, and it looks beautiful on slopes, banks, and cascading over walls. It softens the transition between beds and hard surfaces, and it needs no work to always look great. It can even be grown to cover the soil in large planters and spill out of them beautifully.
- Dense mat of tight blue-green foliage
- Stays neat and low without any trimming
- Just one plant covers an area 6 feet across
- Very tough, growing well in poor soil
- Drought resistant and cold-hardy
Plant the Green Mound Juniper in full sun, in any well-drained soil. It will thrive even in poor, sandy and gravelly soils, and once established it is very drought tolerant. It grows well in urban conditions, and in dry, rocky places. Pests and diseases don’t bother it when being grown in well-drained soil, and deer and rabbits normally leave it alone. It needs no trimming, and it stays low and neat without any attention. This is definitely a low-maintenance plant that needs almost no care at all, once it is established.
- Plant Hardiness Zones 4-9
- Mature Width 4-6
- Mature Height .5-.75
- Sun Needs Full Sun
Spreading junipers are among the best ways to cover areas of ground in front of larger shrubs, or for covering slopes, banks and open areas. They thrive in sun, dryness and poor soil, and they need no particular care to turn boring into beautiful. These plants come in a range of colors, but everyone agrees that one of the most beautiful, easy to grow, and versatile, is the Green Mound Juniper. This carpet of elegant gray-green foliage forms a broad mat of dense branches, excluding weeds and giving your garden a mature and graceful look.
The Green Mound Juniper is low growing, rising no more than 6 to 9 inches above the ground, but it is wide-spreading, covering an area 4 to 6 feet across within 10 years. It grows about 6 inches a year, with the horizontal stems increasing in length, and new shoots growing closer to the center, increasing its density and the tightness of the plant. Unlike most other spreading junipers, this one does not form a hump in the center – instead it remains flat all the way across the plant, even when mature.
All junipers can produce two kinds of leaves, adult leaves on older growth, which are scale-like and press closely to the stem, and juvenile leaves, which are triangular and pointed, growing at an angle from the stems in whorls. Most junipers only have juvenile leaves on young growth, to protect tiny seedlings from being eaten by grazing animals. The Green Mound Juniper has juvenile leaves all its life, because it stays close to the ground and so it always needs protection. These leaves are tightly packed around the stems, about one-third of an inch long, and they are a soft gray-green to blue-green color, blending beautifully with all other plant colors in your garden. This plant may also produce small blue-black berries along the stems in fall. These are not edible, and they are usually taken by birds in winter.
Use the Green Mound Juniper to cover the front areas of your beds, blocking weed growth and making a lovely carpet beneath your larger shrubs and trees. Grow it trailing down banks, where it prevents soil erosion, or let it spill over walls. Planted where beds meet driveways and terraces, it will soften the hard edges and integrate these features into your garden. It will flow like a river around rocks and boulders, turning barren sections into lovely features. Use it in large planters and pots to cover the soil under specimen trees and spill out of the planter in a charming way. For ground-cover, space your plants 2 or 3 feet apart in each direction, placing the plants randomly, not in rows, for a natural look.
The Green Mound Juniper grows in all but the coldest zones, all the way into areas with hot and humid, or hot and dry summers. It should be planted in full sun for the best growth and the densest foliage. It will grow in all kinds of soil, from sands and gravels to heavy clay, but the soil must be well-drained, and not regularly wet. Do not plant in shady, low-lying spots, or in the shade of big evergreen trees. Once established this plant is very drought tolerant, and normally needs no additional watering, even during extended dry spells. so it is a great choice for hot, dry parts of your garden. It tolerates air pollution, making it the perfect choice for urban gardens. It is normally free of pests and diseases, if grown in well-drained soil and a sunny place. Deer and rabbits leave it alone, and no trimming is needed to keep it dense and low. If you do need to shorten branches, trim back to a small shoot on the top of the stem you are cutting. Do not cut back into branches that have no leaves or shoots on them – they will not re-sprout. It is best to trim a little regularly, if needed, rather than wait and try to cut it back hard.
The Green Mound Juniper is a selected form of the Japanese garden juniper, Juniperus procumbens. This plant is closely related to the Chinese juniper, Juniperus chinensis, and it is sometimes considered to be simply a natural variety of that species. It grows in mountain areas of Japan, and selected forms have been cultivated there for centuries. In 1922, D. Hill Nurseries, in Dundee, Illinois, brought back a plant from Japan that was lower, bushier, and more attractive than the rather straggly wild plant already known. It was probably being grown in gardens, and when it was introduced in America it was given the name ‘Nana’, which means ‘small’. At some time since then somebody decided to re-name this plant ‘Green Mound’, and that is the name it is usually sold under today. Our plants are grown from stem pieces, not seed, to preserve the unique qualities of this plant, which make it so suitable for every garden. There is always a lot of interest in ground-cover plants, because they save so much work, and make our gardens look beautiful. Place your order for the Green Mound Juniper today, while our stock is still available.