Illustration
Blue Star Juniper
Juniperus squamata 'Blue Star'
Also called flaky juniper 'blue star' and singleseed juniper
Blue Star Juniper is grown for its foliage rather than flowers, giving the garden structure and color all season long.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Blue Star Juniper
Plant it in full sun. It prefers low water. It is hardy in USDA zones 4–8. Expect it to reach about 2 ft tall and 3.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 10 years (a house reading).
Pets
- Not yet checked for pets.
- Listed as poisonous to people by Royal Horticultural Society.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Blue Star Juniper
Plant Blue Star Juniper in spring once the soil is workable, or by very early fall at the latest: an evergreen needs its roots down well before the ground freezes. In zone 6, the middle of its hardy zones 4 to 8, that is March to May, or August on the fall side.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 6, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 6 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Blue Star Juniper get?
2 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult3.5 ftwideSee Blue Star Juniper in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Blue Star Juniper
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Blue Star Juniper about 3.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Blue Star Juniper to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Blue Star Juniper's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags were checked against 20 published sources on October 29, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources. Bloom was checked as well: Blue Star Juniper bears no flowers, so there is no bloom window for a source to carry.
- NC State ExtensionPlant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, years to mature size and trait tags
- Fine GardeningPlant Guideheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, years to mature size and trait tags
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, years to mature size and trait tags
- Purdue ArboretumExplorerheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, years to mature size and trait tags
- The Tree Centerheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, years to mature size and trait tags
- colesvillenursery.comColesville Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and years to mature size
- iselinursery.comIseli Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and years to mature size
- Oregon State UniversityLandscape Plantsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, spread, sun, years to mature size and trait tags
- Chicago Botanic Gardenhardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags
- devilmountainnursery.comDevil Mountain Wholesale Nurseryheight, spread, hardiness zones and sun
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderhardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags
- promessedefleurs.iePromesse de Fleursheight, spread, hardiness zones and water
- conifersociety.orgAmerican Conifer Society Conifer Databaseheight, spread and years to mature size
- pridescorner.comPrides Corner Farmshardiness zones, sun and trait tags
- Clemson Home and Garden Information CenterHGIC 1068, genus factsheetsun and trait tags
- conifersociety.orgAmerican Conifer Societyheight and spread
- plantsearch.extension.umn.eduUniversity of Minnesota Extension Plant Elements of Designhardiness zones and sun
- woodyplants.cals.cornell.eduCornell University Woody Plants Database (Juniperus squamata species e...hardiness zones and sun
- woodyplants.cals.cornell.eduCornell University Woody Plants Database ('Blue Star' cultivar entry)height
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Good to know about Blue Star Juniper
Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note.
Safety
Toxicity depends on the species. Savin (Juniperus sabina) is dangerous: its oil can cause miscarriage and liver damage. Common junipers show no such effect. Never use juniper oil internally. per Molecules
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Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.