How to Make a Blue Point Juniper Grow Taller

The stately Blue Point juniper (Juniperus chinensis “Blue Point”) is a tall, conical-shaped shrub with blue-tinted foliage. A versatile shrub, it offers a quality replacement for the Italian cypress in cooler regions, provides the ideal accent to a zen garden or, planted in rows, acts as a privacy screen or wind barrier. Blue Point junipers are hardy to zones 4 through 9 on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Although Blue Points typically grow from 8 to 10 feet tall, there are several ways to coax them to put on a few more feet. Bear in mind that the taller Blue Point is susceptible to wind damage at the top of the shrub.

Things You'll Need

• 6-12-12 fertilizer

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Instructions

1. • 1

     Grow the Blue Point juniper in full sun. The shrub does fine in the shade, but it won’t grow as quickly or as tall as it should.

   • 2

     Fertilize the Blue Point juniper shrub in early spring and again in fall. Use a 6-12-12 granular fertilizer, spread on the soil 6 inches from the base of the shrub. Apply fertilizer to moist soil and water after the application, to a depth of 6 inches. Fertilizer provides the nutrients necessary for the Blue Juniper’s rapid growth rate.

   • 3

     Prune the Blue Point minimally, if at all. When not pruned, the shrub grows to 12 to 15 feet in height – 2 to 5 feet taller than pruned shrubs.