Juniperus horizontalis named `Blue Prince`

Abstract

A new and distinct variety of creeping juniper, Juniperus horizontalis, was discovered while growing in a seedbed of native plants of the same species. The new variety exhibits attractive intense steel blue fine-needled foliage combined with a low-growing extremely prostrate compact growth habit. The blue foliage coloration is substantially retained throughout the year with only a minimal fading in intensity during the winter. Good winter hardiness and resistance to diseases have been observed to date. Accordingly, the new variety can be considered to exhibit what appears to be juvenile foliage throughout the year. The new variety propagates well from cuttings and is particularly well suited for growing as a distinctive ground cover in a mass planting.

I claim: 
     
       1. A new and distinct variety of Juniperus horizontalis which: (a) exhibits attractive intense steel blue fine-needled foliage,   (b) exhibits an extremely prostrate compact growth habit, and   (c) is particularly well suited for growing as a ground cover; substantially as herein shown and described.