Habitat

• native to Russia
• found above the tree line in the mountains
• zone 3

Habit and Form

• a low growing spreading conifer
• evergreen, with an appearance similar to the low growing junipers
• generally reaching a height of 12" or so
• can spread to at least 10' wide
• foliage is soft and feathery
• shoots arch over with drooping tips

Summer Foliage

• foliage is scale-like and prickly to the touch
• color is a bright green
• looks much like juniper foliage
• branchlets in flattened sprays

Autumn Foliage

• foliage is evergreen, but turns a bronzy-purple color with exposure to cold and sun
• foliage "greens up" in the spring

Flowers

• not of any ornamental importance
• monoecious with male and female flowers

Fruit

• not of any ornamental importance
• a single, naked seed with basal scales

Bark

• reddish-brown, but not of importance because stems are slender

Culture

• an easily grown plant
• does not appear to be fussy about soil as long as it is well drained
• initially touted as the "juniper for shade"
• although it is tolerant of partial shade, it looks at its best in full sun

Landscape Use

• a top notch evergreen groundcover
• a good substitute for juniper
• useful as an evergreen groundcover in partial shade (not full shade)
• best used in groupings
• bank stabilization

Liabilities

• probably not as shade tolerant as initially reported
• still somewhat uncommon and hard to find
• some dislike the purple-bronze needle color in the winter
• a new plant for which little long term information has been collected

ID Features

• juniper-like foliage
• foliage is scale-like and feathery
• low growing habit with drooping shoot tips
• winter foliage is purple-bronze

Propagation

• by cuttings

Cultivars/Varieties

• none