S & J Nursery’s Guide to Growing
Brodie Cedar
in the Northeast Florida, Jacksonville | St. Augustine
Area Landscapes
( Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ )
Brodie Cedar / Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ Origins:
– Brodie Cedars are a selection of the Florida Native Juniperus virginiana grown for their beautiful shiny emerald green scales and needles as well as their densely columnar growth habit. Very pretty plant selection.
Preferred Exposure of the Brodie Cedar / Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ :
– Plant your Brodie Cedar into a full sun location here in the Jacksonville, St. Augustine or other areas of the Northeast Florida landscape.
Foliage | Bark of the Brodie Cedar / Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ :
– Really a very showy selection of Juniperus virginiana, having vibrant,
almost shiny grass green or emerald green foliage.
– Typically a single trunked tree. Bark is green on new growth and matures to a dark reddish brown coloring as it ages.
Soil Preference / Salt tolerance of the Brodie Cedar / Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ :
– Brodie cedars are tolerant of a wide range of soil conditions, acid, sandy
dry soils, loam, alkaline, etc. as long as the soils are well draining.
– High salt tolerance.
Size Variance of the Brodie Cedar /
Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ :
– Here in the Northeast Florida landscape, Brodie cedars are said to grow
to 10-12 feet in height with up to a 6-8 ft spread. That is the height range being given by our Florida suppliers. However, that being said, some information from non Florida suppliers seems to indicate that under the right conditions Brodie cedars can reach height of near 25 ft.
Growth Habit of the Brodie Cedar / Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ :
– Grown for its narrowly pyramidal form, Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’
has a densely foliated upright growth habit.
Growth Rate of Brodie Cedar /
Juniperus virginiana ‘Brodie’ in Northeast Florida:
– Moderate to Fast growing trees capable of adding several feet to their height in a single growing season.
Water Requirements of the Brodie Cedar Tree:
– Drought tolerant once established into the landscape from your S & J
Nursery container.
Blooms and Fruits / Butterfly or Bird Attracting:
– Fruits of the Brodie Cedar are rounded / cone shaped less than fleshy
purple or bluish colored fruits sometimes described as sky blue because of the white waxy coating that covers the fruits. They are both bird and squirrel attracting!
Best Uses For Brodie Cedar in the North Florida | Jacksonville | St. Augustine area
landscape:
– The dense evergreen foliage of the Brodie cedar makes it an ideal choice for a privacy screen to block out neighboring houses or unsightly views.
– Perfect for a windscreen or where a more narrow or columnar cedar may be needed.
– High salt tolerance makes Brodie cedar an excellent coastal planting.
– Drought tolerant and virtually maintenance free, the Brodie cedar is an
easy care landscape plant selection for the Northeast Florida landscape.
– Perfect shape for a living Christmas tree.
Care of Brodie Cedar:
– Water every day during the establishment period. See watering your newly planted trees for more information.
– Provide a 1 ft diameter circle of mulched area where grass is kept from growing for each inch of caliper (or diameter) of trunk measured 4 inches from the ground level.
– Fertilize each spring with a mixture of Milorganite and a slow release poly
coated plant food such as Osmocote or Stay Green general purpose plant food, sprinkling the fertilizer around the mulch circle underneath the foliage of the tree.