Hollywood Juniper is a small, upright, evergreen tree or shrub in the Cupressaceae family that grows up to 20'-30' high. This plant prefers the sun and has excellent heat and salt tolerance. It is pH-adapted and prefers moist, well-drained soils. Hollywood juniper tolerates erosion and air pollution and is easily transplanted. This plant makes an excellent specimen or accent plant due to sculptural branching and the eye-catching strips that occur when the bark peels off. It has a slow to medium growth rate and works well planted as a privacy screen, windbreak, or in an Asian style garden. This plant has some pest and disease problems but it is resistant to damage by deer. It grows in a wide variety of soils including clay but does not tolerate wet soils. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No serious insect or disease problems. Occasional insect pests include aphids, bagworms, webworms, and scale. Junipers are generally susceptible to tip and needle blights. Cedar-apple rust and related rust diseases spend part of their life cycle on junipers. Root rot may occur, particularly in wet, poorly drained soils. Canker may attack bark or main stems. This plant, like other junipers is deer, drought, air pollution, salt, and erosion resistant. See the "Pests 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. Quick ID Hints: Has a twisted, irregular branching habit Vivid bluish-green leaves are 90% or more scale type The female cone is berry-like, tiny, and glaucous More information on Juniperus chinensis .
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.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Alkaline (>8.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 15 ft. 0 in. - 30 ft. 0 in. | Width: 10 ft. 0 in. - 15 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Canopy layer
2 - Understory (15-40 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Needled Evergreen
Leaf color
Green
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
90% or more of leaves on this plant are scale leaves in 4 ranks. Leaves are in opposite pairs, are tufted, and are a vivid bluish-green in color. The variegated form has creamy, white markings. Juvenile leaves are awl shaped.
Flower detail
No flowers, but cones are large and brown and fall apart upon maturity. Female cones are blue, fleshy "berry" looking.
Fruit detail
No true fruits, but female cones are blue, fleshy "berry" looking and edible, often used as a seasoning.
Stem detail
Stems are twisted with irregular open areas, making the plant "a living piece of sculpture."