Blue point juniper yellowing dry

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

I would really like to grow a couple of blue point junipers adjacent to my driveway. I should note prior to these turning yellow I had one in about 4 feet tall that was displaying the same signs of yellowing. I replanted it at a different location and it’s been looking fantastic. I’ve already mixed organic soil, fed it, put disease control on it. It’s been like this since the end of July with no real signs of recovering. It has pretty much looked the exact same. Could I have some weird lurking disease in the soil on this side of my driveway that junipers absolutely hate? I’ve also treated it with bifen incase it was a mite problem. It’s very dry I could probably shake all the foliage off it but without messing with it the foliage has managed to stay intact with some greening at the bottom that hasn’t changed.

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Comments (5)

User
5 years ago
I think you have the wrong plant for that place.
Deven Webster
Original Author
5 years ago
@User what do you mean? Bad location? Why? Visually it would turn out okay and I’m using the same soil where one is thriving. They grow well in my climate zone.
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Deven Webster
Original Author
5 years ago
best theory 1 - root rot I dug it out to find the roots and soil were pretty damp despite not being watered in a month. It sits near irrigation lines which could be giving off moisture. It also was sitting a little lower then I liked and in direct line with the grade. It hasn’t rained in a long time but we have had days with high moisture, dew and moisture probably makes it’s way down in the root zone and it stays too wet, I raised it up quite a bit so now any water would divert away from it. Does anyone concur with my theory and think raising it up like I did shown in the photo of the healthy one, will keep it drier and bring her colors back?
hl_60
5 years ago
You may want to post this in the Conifer forum on Houzz.
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
5 years ago
When conifer needles turn a golden or brown coloring like that, it is a pretty sure bet that the plant is dead or very close to it. Once the needles turn that off color, they will not change back and they no longer achieve their purpose of photosynthesis. Without the ability to photosynthesize - essentially how a plant feeds itself - it will die.

This is a watering issue and has nothing to do with insects, diseases or lack of fertilization. Both not enough water and too much water will produce similar symptoms. Junipers are remarkably drought tolerant once established but they are very intolerant of poor drainage or soils that remain too wet for too long or over irrigation.

Based on your description, it appears there is some sort of drainage issue in that location that is preventing the soil from draining promptly and drying. Could the nearby irrigation lines be leaking?

There is no point in raising the planting level now. The plant is beyond responding so just get rid of it. But before you replant in that area you need to discover why the soil was saying so moist for so long and make the necessary corrections. Otherwise the replacement will follow the same fate.