Jonathan Ya'akobi

Junipers In Mediterranean Gardens - Design Issues to Consider

Junipers if used correctly can form the basis of an extremely satisfying garden composition. For gardeners in dry and Mediterranean climates, they are especially relevant

The number of different types and forms of Juniper make it ideal to form the backbone of a Mediterranean and arid climate garden design. For in general, when a number of types of the same plant are used together, two principles of good design are addressed - namely the need for unity on the one hand, and variety on the other.

Junipers come in every shape, form, size and even shade imaginable. There are Juniper trees, large shrubs for screening, sprawling low growing bushes and ground hugging varieties. These last, cannot be seen as an alternative to a lawn in the functional sense, - it’s not possible to walk on juniper ground covers - but visually, they do provide for an open, unified and fairly neat ground plane. With regard to color, many different shades of green, gold, bluish green and silver grey are available.

Junipers are evergreen conifers, and therefore associate well with other coniferous plants. The more sculptural types like “Kaizuka” or “Skyrocket” can support the strong vertical emphasis of a Cypress tree for instance, or a mass of shrubs like “Mint Julep” or “Gold Coast” would go well with a pine tree. Again it should be emphasized that both unity and variety, or similarity and difference, are being addressed.

In a dry climate garden composition, Junipers can also be successfully mixed with a number of non conifers. The leaf texture of Melaleuca shrubs is very similar to the Juniper’s, while the purple leaved Barberry, (Berberis thungergii) combines better with them than most shrubs of such foliage color. Another suitable combination involves a carpet of ice plant (Lampranthus spectabilis) surrounded by Juniper shrubs.

In oriental style gardens, sculptural Junipers can be highly effective if used judiciously and with restraint. They go very well for example with Nandina domestica and the various species of Bamboo. A group of Junipers can also be useful as transition plants linking parts of the garden where differing styles prevail, such as a Mediterranean section and an Oriental one.

Stability is one of the great contributions that coniferous evergreens in general and Junipers in particular provide to a garden. Yet that is their drawback as well, because the other side of the stability coin is a lack of seasonal change. A garden composed entirely of evergreen trees and shrubs is essentially static in nature. However one may like Junipers, (although they are not to everyone’s taste) the value of including some deciduous plants in the garden composition should not be overlooked either.

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