Weeping Juniper Tree

Identification and Size

• Weeping junipers have broad, round crowns and scale-like green leaves that hang on branches containing branchlets. The tree’s deeply wrinkled reddish-brown bark shreds into long strips. These trees grow from 25 to 30 feet by maturity. According to the United States Forest Service website, the tallest weeping juniper stands 55 feet tall and has a circumference of 8.5 feet. They bear berrylike cones containing seeds.

Geography

• Although in the United States, the weeping juniper tree is found only in Texas in the Big Bend National Park in the Chisos Mountains, they’re the most widely seen juniper in Mexico. Most weeping juniper trees in Mexico extend from Chihuahua and northeastern Sonora and go south to Oaxaca and Guatemala. In addition to hot weather, a weeping juniper can also survive severe freezes, adding beauty to a winter landscape.

Growing Conditions

• The weeping juniper is ideal for dry regions receiving little rain. Grow these trees in partial shade and give them sufficient water during the first year so a good root system can be established. They grow in a wide range of soils including, rocky, sandy, clay, loam clay, medium loam and acid-based igenous soils.

Types

• The weeping or drooping juniper’s scientific name is Juniperus flaccida Schlecht (Cupressaceae); it includes three known varieties.
  The var. flaccida has drooping branchlets and cinnamon colored bark that shreds in fibrous strips, while the var. martinezii is usually a shrub with grayish-brown bark and gray branches. The var. poblana, a tree with a forked trunk and globose crown, has brown bark, erect branches and unnoticeable leaves.

Warnings

• Just as most "weeping" plants, the weeping juniper has a unique shape, so it can serve as focal point in a yard. Use common sense when planting them because too many weeping junipers in one area can look busy and confusing.

  The flaccida and poblana varieties contain volatile oils, causing parts of these plants to be considered toxic.