Juniper shrub trim may have taken too much off

Q: Did I make a big mistake? I have several large hedge-like juniper shrubs that line my property out front. I wanted to get them more back in control, so to speak, and arranged to have them pruned back some. Well, the parts that you can see from the yard got a trimming and are still wearing green from the top of them to their base, and that side looks great. The sidewalk side got trimmed severely, so there is only green at the top of the shrubs. You see a mass of naked sticks and branches supporting the fringe of green at the top, but there is absolutely no green on that side of my junipers, except at the tippy top! Will my treasured junipers regreen, so to speak, on that side? Ever? They look so forlorn. Did I make a big mistake? — J.T., Albuquerque

A: Oh goodness. I am most concerned for your juniper hedge.

From everything I know it’ll be years, if ever, for them to repair themselves. Think of it this way. As your junipers grew, the internal structure — the branches and stems — were shielded from sunlight. They then became the support structure for the parts of the juniper that were able to gather sunlight. Over the years, their job changed, and they are no longer capable of budding out new growth to fill in green again. Sort of like a tree trunk.

As a tree grows, all of the leaf is on that outer edge and the trunk, limbs and branches don’t grow leaf. It is the stems that grow and support leaves. So what you’re seeing is years of the juniper doing what comes naturally. Growing the green on the outer edge like it’s supposed to.

I know of no miracle that will cause the juniper to fill in and regrow green on that super exposed side. They’ll look peculiar and you’ll want to be sure to collect and remove any trash or litter that could get captured so they don’t look sad or unloved. Wish I had better news, but I think too much was overzealously removed. Keep them watered and fertilized and who knows, stranger things have happened.

Dear readers: I wish to thank everyone who offered input on my writings about the common weed purslane. I had no idea that it was so available and depended on as a food crop worldwide. Such a non-noxious, relatively pretty weed that has been consumed for a millennium. Again, thank you for taking your time to offer me more insight to this, what some call a weed.

Happy Diggin’ In!

Tracey Fitzgibbon is a certified nurseryman. Send garden-related questions to Digging In, Albuquerque Journal, 7777 Jefferson NE, Albuquerque, N.M. 87109, or to features@abqjournal.com.