Habitat

• native to Korea, Manchuria and Northern China
• zone 6, or zone 5 in protected sites

Habit and Form

• an evergreen
• a large shrub or small tree
• dense, conical shape
• 18' to 25' tall, 10' wide
• slow growing
• medium texture

Summer Foliage

• leaves are triangular scales with a blunt point
• scales are approx. .05" to .1"
• scales have a distinct grooved pattern on the back
• scales are closely pressed to stem sprays, however unlike other similar species the scales are not closely pressed to the stem tip
• medium green to yellowish color
• leaves emit an odor when bruised
• branchlets are arranged in vertical planes

Autumn Foliage

• evergreen no fall color
• can discolor in harsh winters

Flowers

• not ornamentally important
• monoecious

Fruit

• fleshy, glaucous blue-green color when developing
• woody horn-like cone when mature
• medium-brown color

Bark

• shredding
• brown to gray-brown color

Culture

• transplants well
• tolerant of most conditions, except does poorly in boggy sites
• best in full sun; tolerates light shade
• avoid planting where it will be exposed to harsh winter winds
• pH adaptable

Landscape Use

• specimens
• hedges
• mass plantings
• screens

Liabilities

• spider mites
• bagworm
• ice and snow build-up can break branches

ID Features

• bruised leaves emit odor
• branchlets arranged in a vertical pattern
• hard horn-like cones
• tends to keep green color in winter
• shredding gray-brown bark
• distinct groove of back of scales

Propagation

• by seed

Cultivars/Varieties

Dwarf forms include: 'Aurea Nana', a dense globular plant to 10' tall with yellow-green foliage; 'Baker', a dense conical plant to 8' tall; 'Compacta', a compact pyramidal form useful for formal applications; 'Juniperoides', a rounded 3' tall form with blue-gray needles; 'Westmont', a slow-growing bun to 2' tall and wide with yellow-tipped green leaves.

Yellow-foliaged forms include: 'Conspicua' (probably the true "Berckmann's Golden Biota"), a large, upright-growing conical plant with vertical branches of yellow foliage; 'Filiformis Aurea', an upright oval shrub with stringy yellow branchlets.