PLANT FINDER
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper
Juniperus chinensis 'Shimpaku Aurea'
Height: 4 feet
Spread: 5 feet
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: 3a
Description:
Golden cypress-like foliage adds fine texture to the garden; a dwarf shrub ideal for smaller spaces, containers, bonsai or as a groundcover
Ornamental Features
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper is a dwarf conifer which is primarily valued in the landscape or garden for its broadly spreading habit of growth. It has attractive gold evergreen foliage. The scale-like sprays of foliage are highly ornamental and remain gold throughout the winter.
Landscape Attributes
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a ground-hugging habit of growth. It lends an extremely fine and delicate texture to the landscape composition which can make it a great accent feature on this basis alone.
This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper is recommended for the following landscape applications;
- Border Edging
- General Garden Use
- Groundcover
- Topiary
- Container Planting
Planting & Growing
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 5 feet. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.
This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Shimpaku Golden Chinese Juniper makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.