Esprit Bonsai International – August 2019

34 - EspritBonsaiInternational #101

Portrait
of a Species

Cultivation details

Family: Cupressaceae

Genus: Juniperus

Species: Juniperus phoenicea

Soil: well-draining soil with

10% of fibrous peat.

Exposure: no direct sunlight in summer.

Watering: generous; this species likes

to be kept damp in summer.

Phoenicean junipers can boast wonderful forms and deadwood.

This Mediterranean species is starting to work its way into collections.

On the limestone cliffs of the Corbières

mountain range, Phoenicean juniper is often

the only species able to take up residence.

J

unipers are among the most

popular evergreens used to

create bonsai. Phoenicean

juniper is one of the species availa-

ble in France, where Thierry Font was

a trailblazer in making it into bonsai.

It is still a rare sight in collections,

but merits a closer look, particular-

ly because of the unequalled quality

and hardness of its wood, according

to the Japanese masters who have

encountered it.

In France’s Corbières

mountains

Phoenicean juniper (Juniperus

phoenicea) is also known by the name

arâr. It is most often bushy in form,

but in the right conditions the shrub

can take on the appearance of a tree

and reach 8 metres (26 feet) in height.

Stunning

deadwood

Author: Jean-François Busquet

This juniper grows all around the

Mediterranean basin: in North Africa

and as far as the Canary Islands, its

northern limit being the southern end

of France’s Massif Central. Liking poor

soils with a moderately basic pH, it has

made itself at home in the calcareous

mountains and plateaus of southern

France. In the extreme south, it is often

the only species able to colonise areas

where the impact of climatic condi-

tions on stony, unforgiving terrain is

considerable. Unlike the classic spe-

cies which is sensitive to sea spray, a

maritime species, J.  phoenicea sub-

species turbinata, is oblivious to it, and

specimens of the latter grace rocky

coastlines, notably in Sicily.

Phoenicean juniper is monoecious,

with no sexual differentiation, unlike

other junipers which are dioecious.

A Mediterranean species

that grows in extreme

locations and conditions,

the Phoenicean juniper

produces amazing shapes and

deadwood. It is a material of

choice for bonsai.

Phoenicean

juniper