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Holbert Chinese Juniper

Juniperus chinensis (jew-NIP-er-us chi-NEN-sis)

Family: Cupressaceae Non-native Shrub (3-15 ft)

Holbert Chinese juniper is a blue needled male cultivar shrub in the Cupressaceae (cypress) family. Holbert is a large tough shrub that thrives in heat and dry soil and does well on banks. It can grow to 12 feet wide and 6 feet tall. The needles maintain a gray to blue color year-round. The branches grow horizontally, giving it a layered appearance. Plant in full sun in poor, dry and well-drained soils. Use this plant in problem areas, on banks and to add winter interest. It is heat and drought tolerant. Give this plant plenty of room to spread and avoid pruning, as new growth will often not appear on old wood. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems. See potential insect problems of conifers fact sheet to the left. The Clemson Cooperative Extension Home and Garden Information Center has a factsheet on common juniper diseases and insect pests. VIDEO created by Andy Pulte for “Landscape Plant Identification, Taxonomy and Morphology” a plant identification course offered by the Department of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 37 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 3 - Shrub (3-15 ft)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Fills a similar niche Juniperus squamata 'Blue Star' Rosa rugosa Vitex agnus-castus

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Shrub
Life cycle
Woody
USDA zones
4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 2 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in. | Width: 6 ft. 0 in. - 12 ft. 0 in.
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
3 - Shrub (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Horizontal; Multi-stemmed; Spreading
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Needled Evergreen
Leaf color
Blue; Gray/Silver; Green
Leaf type
Needles
Leaf size
< 1 inch long, < 1 inch wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Needles are awl-shaped (juvenile) to scale-like (adult)
Flower detail
No flowers
Fruit detail
This is a male plant so no fruit
Stem color
Brown/Copper; Green
Stem detail
Stems are green to coppery in color
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Asia
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Pool/Hardscape; Rock Wall; Slope/Bank
Landscape theme
Drought Tolerant Garden; Winter Garden
Design feature
Accent; Specimen
Garden tags
#needled evergreen #blue needles #slopes #heat tolerant #full sun #landscape plant sleuths course #dry soils tolerant #poor soil tolerant
Problems & Resistance
Insect problems
Pests of Conifers
Resistant to
Deer; Drought; Dry Soil; Erosion; Heat; Poor Soil; Urban Conditions

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.