How2Day: Juniper Trees for the Indoors

Junipers (Juniperus) are evergreen, coniferous plants that come in a wide range of sizes including tall trees to low shrubs. The smaller varieties of juniper, including low-growing ground covers, are ideal for use in planters for indoors. The plants have small, scale-like foliage in a variety of colors, including light to dark green, blue, silver, yellow and gold. Juniper plants are popular as they are low maintenance, have a good tolerance for drought and keep their color with minimal care.

Blue pacific juniper (Juniperus conferta) is a small-growing juniper well suited to growing indoors with its mature height of 10 inches. The plant can spread up to several feet and regular pruning can keep to desired size. Blue pacific juniper is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) hardiness zones 6 to 8 and has a rapid rate of growth, preferring areas of sun. Blue pacific juniper gets its name from the blue green color of its needles.

San Jose Chinese juniper (Juniperus chinensis) grows to a low height of about 12 inches, well suited to growing as an indoor plant. The evergreen plant has a sage green foliage color and upward growing branches with a tendency to spread, creating an interesting shape that can be pruned to desired size. San Jose juniper is hardy in USDA zones 6 to 8 and has a fine texture, growing well in areas of sun.

Japanese juniper (Juniperus procumbens) is a low-growing juniper with a moderate growth rate, achieving a mature height of 18 to 30 inches. The fine-textured juniper variety can be grown indoors, given its size. The foliage has a distinct blue green and the plant is hardy in USDA zones 6 to 8, growing well in areas of sun. Japanese juniper also comes in a dwarf variety of about 18 inches, referred to as 'Nana.'

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