How to tell if wind burned Spartan Juniper will replace needles - Ask Extension
New transplants July 2018 of Spartan juniper in back yard in Prior Lake, MN. Sizes are 20gal. pots put into properly prepared holes, drip line moist...
Knowledgebase
How to tell if wind burned Spartan Juniper will replace needles #567159
Asked June 04, 2019, 11:42 AM EDT
New transplants July 2018 of Spartan juniper in back yard in Prior Lake, MN. Sizes are 20gal. pots put into properly prepared holes, drip line moisture, bark mulch. After the winter there were lots of brown needles. Some branches have green tips on the end and dead rust needles behind that. We tried fertilizing and watering this spring.
How to tell if the branches are alive and will eventually put forth new needles? A couple of the trees have gold/green leader tips, the rest have green leaders.
Or, are these hopeless?
IF replaced, will Spartan Junipers stay healthy without burlap covering?
Scott County Minnesota
Expert Response
Juniper are susceptible to winter burn. Newly planted juniper are even more likely to get winter burn. Prune out dead, brown, or dying tissue in mid-spring after new foliage is produced. If new foliage has not yet emerged by spring, scratch the bark on affected branches and look for green tissue underneath. Peel back the bud scales to look for inner green bud tissue. If the stem or bud tissue is green, buds on the branch may still break to form new foliage. If the tissue is brown, the branch is most likely dead and you should prune the branch back to a live, lateral bud or branch.
Https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/winter-burn/
Is a bud scale the terminal bud? If so, is it the green farthest tip of the branch? Please clarify.
Do all varieties of juniper trees winter burn? Are the varieties Blue Arrow or Skyrocket equally of less prone to winter burn?
Will tree junipers most likely have to be burlap wrapped every year for the next 20+ years in MN?
Does spraying them with an antidesiccant help a lot, or a little or not at all?
Prune out the entire dead branch if the leaf bud at the tip of the branch is dead.
Antidesiccant do not help a lot. Please read the section on preventing winter burn. Juniper planted in sunny, windy sites may need to be wrapped each winter to prevent winter burn.
