California juniper bonsai care

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California juniper is a small, hardy, and evergreen tree. These long-lived trees are very slow to grow.

It also has a spreading growth habit with lush branches.

It has a typical juniper-like segmented leaf structure. However, the foliage is the ‘roughest’ of any other juniper trees. The color of the foliage is green to bluish green.

The trunk of the tree becomes irregular and forked as it matures, and the thin, shredded bark turns gray and peels easily.

Because of this characteristic, even very young trees have a rugged, aged appearance.

One of its main features of attraction is its beautiful deadwood. The only other juniper varieties used for bonsai which have the ability to form such beautiful deadwood are Sargent’s Juniper bonsai (aka Juniperus chinensis Sargentii or shimpaku) and Needle Juniper bonsai (aka Juniperus rigida or temple juniper or ‘Tosho’)

The female tree produces bluish white and waxy berries.

California juniper bonsai tree is also a very good indoor bonsai tree.

Read more about other pine tree bonsai in : Bonsai tree care .

Best location to keep California juniper Bonsai

While this tree can be kept indoors during the summer, it will benefit from spending one or two weeks outside in the sun. $ hours of sunlight per day is good enough.

When kept in slight shade, the foliage color will become bluish green.

In winter, however, you can keep the tree in a bright location.

The ideal winter temperature range is 45°F (7°C) to 55°F (13°C).

Remember that these trees are native to dry locations.

IMP: Refer sunlight requirements for indoor plants for more indoor gardening ideas. Also, refer to do bonsai trees need sunlight for more indoor and outdoor bonsai location ideas.

Propagation of California juniper

Propagation of California juniper tree takes a lot of time. (almost a year)

California juniper can be propagated using seeds or mature stem cuttings. However, it requires a lot of patience and these methods do not guarantee success.

Take cuttings in fall season, from the stems which had the time to grow in the summer season. keep the length of the cutting to 6 – 8 inches. Avoid taking cuttings in winter.

Plant the cuttings (after applying some rooting hormone) and try and maintain a temperature of 68°F to 86°F (20°C – 30°C). Water the pot every day or as required. Rooting of the cutting will occur in 10 – 12 months.

While using seeds, soak the seeds in water for almost 6 hours. Apply some warm stratification for 3 months and then cold stratification for 3 months. (Use large quantity of seeds in case you have decided to take on this challenge)

Sow these seeds in spring to achieve germination in the next spring season.

A better way to get your California juniper for bonsai : Collect your tree from high desert in California. or just buy it.

Watering California juniper Bonsai

Throughout the year, keep the bonsai soil moist but not saturated.

In the winter, if the bonsai container is kept indoors, it will require less watering.

An occasional sprinkling of water over Juniper is beneficial to the plant.

Its good to note that this tree is very drought tolerant.

Read watering bonsai tree for more details.

Wiring California juniper Bonsai

The wiring can be done at any time of the year. However, do not do heavy wire training in summer and winter.

Fall is a good time to do heavy splitting and bending of the branches.

Do not trap any needles below the wire. Use raffia if you can.

Pruning California juniper Bonsai

When to prune California juniper bonsai?

How to prune California juniper bonsai?

The slow growth rate of this tree makes regular pruning necessary.

It can handle hard pruning very well.

Whenever pruning new green growth, pruning should be done by pinching out the segments of the leaf. However, avoid pruning new growth in early spring.

Also, cutting through the leaf will lead to browning and withering of the leaf.

Let the leaves elongate throughout the spring.

Prune these elongated shoots in summer. Now wait for more prolific growth after this pruning (for almost 2 months) and then prune again. Like this, the heavy branches of trees can be pruned all year long.

This juniper should never be cut until the growth has hardened.

Creation of shari is best performed in early to mid summer. Do not do this in winter when junipers are dormant, as callous formation is minimal.

When pruning or removing dead branches, use Bonsai clippers instead of scissors.

Repotting California juniper Bonsai

When to repot California juniper bonsai?

These trees can be repotted every 3 -4 years in early spring.

Keep the root pruning to a minimum. These trees take a lot of time to develop a good root structure.

It is important to incorporate good drainage into the compost. Water the bonsai after repotting.

After watering the tree, it should be kept warm and dry for about three weeks. These conditions will help in developing good growth and root development.

You can use a basic free-draining, alkaline bonsai soil mix as a potting soil.

Or you can use a mixture of Lava chippings, akadama and pumice in the ratio of 1:1:1.

Must Read: Bonsai Soil Recipes

Must read : Choosing the right bonsai container

Feeding California juniper Bonsai

Throughout the growing season, feed should be applied once every two to three weeks.

If the house is kept cool during the winter, then feeding should be discontinued. However, if the house is kept warm, then a little should be given.

For young bonsai specimens, you can apply high nitrogen feed to promote vigor. You can skip this as the bonsai has matured.

Read more about bonsai fertilizer and its application.

Diseases and pest of California juniper Bonsai

These trees are susceptible to red spider mites. Apply systemic insecticide.

California juniper bonsai care

These trees can “look” alive for almost half a year before you realize that they are dead. So, unless you know how to properly identify and get the right sample of California Juniper from the wild, I would recommend buy it from an expert.

However, if you are still in the mood to collect your own sample, make sure you know about perfectly digging the root ball out of the ground.

The Juniper should not be styled until new growth appears on the young tree you have just acquired from the wild.

The leaves will turn yellow in case of less watering and less light. Make sure that you don’t change the light levels all of a sudden. Make gradual changes.

Also, over watering will cause root rot.