How To Grow Juniperus chinensis From Seeds

 With their bluish-green foliage and conical form, Chinese junipers (Juniperus chinensis) add structure and year-round color to ornamental landscaping within U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 to 9. They are best propagated from cuttings, although Chinese junipers will also grow from freshly cleaned and pretreated seeds. Despite sufficient processing, Chinese juniper seeds sometimes take one full year to successfully sprout and are subject to a high rate of failure if exposed to hot temperatures, so it is advisable to keep the seeds cool and moist to ensure the best outcome.

1

Gather Chinese juniper seeds in late autumn once the fruit ripens to a dark, silvery purple color and the flesh yields to slight pressure. Gather the fruit in a bucket.

2

Pour water into the bucket until the Chinese juniper fruit is completely submerged. Soak the fruit for 24 hours, stirring occasionally. Mash the fruit against the bottom of the bucket using a hammer. Soak the fruit another 24 hours.

3

Scrape off the flesh and damaged seeds floating on the surface of the water. Drain off the water. Scoop out the seeds that sank to the bottom. Place them in a shallow bowl.

4

Cover the seeds with very hot water. Soak them for six hours. Change out the water whenever it begins to cool, so that the seeds are never allowed to fully cool off. Leave the seeds in the water while preparing the growing containers.

5

Fill a nursery tray with a mixture of four parts seed-starting compost and one part sand. Leave the top 1/4-inch of the tray empty. Saturate the mix with water. Press the surface to release the excess moisture.

6

Sow the Chinese juniper seeds two inches apart. Gently press them into the surface until they are halfway buried. Cover them with a 1/4-inch-thick layer of compost and a thin layer of pine needle mulch.

7

Loosely cover the nursery tray with plastic wrap, and place it on a warming mat. Set the temperature to 75 F. Warm the seeds for three months to break their dormancy. Remoisten the compost when the surface feels dry.

8

Move the nursery tray outdoors after the warming period has ended. Place it in a sheltered spot under light shade where temperatures stay around 40 F. Remove the plastic wrap. Water to a 1-inch depth when the compost dries out on the surface.

9

Watch for germination in spring once nighttime temperatures stay above freezing for three to four weeks. Transplant the Chinese juniper seedlings into individual 4-inch containers filled with garden soil once they grow to 1 inch in height.

10

Grow the Chinese junipers under light shade for their first summer. Water weekly to a 2-inch depth to prevent stress. Acclimate them to direct sun for several weeks before transplanting them into the garden in autumn.

Things You Will Need

• Bucket
• Hammer
• Bowl
• Nursery tray
• Seed-starting compost
• Sand
• Pine needle mulch
• Plastic wrap
• Warming mat
• 4-inch containers
• Garden soil