Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii

Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii
Botanical specimen in the Botanischer Garten, Dresden, Germany
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Embryophytes
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Gymnosperms
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Cupressales
Family:	Cupressaceae
Genus:	Juniperus
Species:	J. chinensis
Variety:	J. c. var. sargentii
Trinomial name
Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii A.Henry
Synonyms
List Juniperus chinensis subsp. sargentii (A.Henry) Silba Juniperus procumbens Sarg. Juniperus sargentii (A.Henry) Takeda ex Nakai Sabina chinensis var. sargentii (A.Henry) W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu Sabina sargentii (A.Henry) Nakai Juniperus sargentii var. coeruleum Pshenn. Juniperus sargentii var. cyanus Pshenn. Sabina pacifica Nakai

Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii, commonly known as Sargent juniper or Sargent's Chinese juniper, is a variety of Chinese juniper in the family Cupressaceae. It is a low-growing, evergreen, dioecious shrub native to parts of northeastern Asia.

Sargent juniper has a prostrate or mat-forming growth habit, with branches that may produce ascending shoots. It typically grows to about 0.5–0.6 m (1.6–2.0 ft) in height and can spread approximately 2.4–3 m (8–10 ft) wide.

The foliage is evergreen and consists of blue-green, scale-like adult leaves and juvenile, needle-like leaves arranged in whorls of three. The plant is dioecious, with male and female cones occurring on separate plants. Female plants produce fleshy, berry-like seed cones that are bluish to bluish-black when mature.

The native range of the variety includes Japan, the Kuril Islands, Sakhalin, Primorye, the Russian Far East, Korea, and Manchuria.

Sargent juniper is cultivated as an ornamental ground cover and is also used in rock gardens and as a bonsai subject. Its low, spreading habit makes it suitable for covering slopes and other areas where a ground-covering evergreen shrub is desired.