Juniper
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AndrewBVIC
- Posts: 1
- Joined: October 26th, 2020, 1:17 pm
- Favorite Species: Juniper
- Bonsai Age: 1
- Bonsai Club: N/A
Juniper
Hi everyone, complete beginner here. My common juniper isn't looking so healthy - see picture. Had for approx.1 year, lives outside. Any lifesaving suggestions welcome. Thanks for your help!
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shibui
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Re: Juniper
Assuming from your Ausbonsai name you live somewhere in Victoria.
Outside is good for juniper so you have that part right.
You have managed to keep it alive for a year so far and that's another positive.
Browning of older leaves is natural but browning of whole sections including new leaves is not so good. The fact that the lower branches appear to be healthy is a good sign.
There are still a number of possible causes for your tree looking like this:
Usually when I see a dead section in a juniper I ask has it been wired because physical damage can cause branches to die if the cambium under the bark is damaged by bending the branches too much or at the wrong time. A severe knock or something falling on the tree can also cause similar damage.
Junipers can be affected by several pests that can cause dieback. Tiny scale insects live amongst the needles. A few mites also like junipers. You may need a magnifying glass to see these tiny pests. Try shaking a branch over a sheet of white paper and look for black dots of insect poo ore even some of the pests that get shaken off. Try to get a really clear close up picture of some different parts of the branches to see if we can see any pests. If you find any evidence try a miticide for mites and/or pesticide for the scale.
Too much or too little water can cause parts of a juniper to die. They do take some time to show damage so the event could be several weeks ago and many people have forgotten about it by the time the brown shows up. Check that the soil still drains well. Water should drain into the soil in less than around 20 seconds when you water the tree. Water only when the soil is nearly dry. Too much water can cause root damage which, in turn, causes leaf damage.
Junipers don't like to be constantly wet but they do like water. Being really dry for even a day can cause significant dieback and spring is a time of changing weather that can catch us off guard and a run of unexpected dry days can be deadly even this early in the growing season.
Too much shade is the other factor I can think of that can cause junipers to die but usually it affects the whole tree rather than just the top.
Outside is good for juniper so you have that part right.
You have managed to keep it alive for a year so far and that's another positive.
Browning of older leaves is natural but browning of whole sections including new leaves is not so good. The fact that the lower branches appear to be healthy is a good sign.
There are still a number of possible causes for your tree looking like this:
Usually when I see a dead section in a juniper I ask has it been wired because physical damage can cause branches to die if the cambium under the bark is damaged by bending the branches too much or at the wrong time. A severe knock or something falling on the tree can also cause similar damage.
Junipers can be affected by several pests that can cause dieback. Tiny scale insects live amongst the needles. A few mites also like junipers. You may need a magnifying glass to see these tiny pests. Try shaking a branch over a sheet of white paper and look for black dots of insect poo ore even some of the pests that get shaken off. Try to get a really clear close up picture of some different parts of the branches to see if we can see any pests. If you find any evidence try a miticide for mites and/or pesticide for the scale.
Too much or too little water can cause parts of a juniper to die. They do take some time to show damage so the event could be several weeks ago and many people have forgotten about it by the time the brown shows up. Check that the soil still drains well. Water should drain into the soil in less than around 20 seconds when you water the tree. Water only when the soil is nearly dry. Too much water can cause root damage which, in turn, causes leaf damage.
Junipers don't like to be constantly wet but they do like water. Being really dry for even a day can cause significant dieback and spring is a time of changing weather that can catch us off guard and a run of unexpected dry days can be deadly even this early in the growing season.
Too much shade is the other factor I can think of that can cause junipers to die but usually it affects the whole tree rather than just the top.
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