What's eating my creeping juniper?

Creeping Juniper, widely used as ground cover, is most threatened by juniper scale and spider mites, which cause yellowing and brown dieback across mats. Bagworms build hanging cases and defoliate sections. Phomopsis blight attacks shoot tips in wet seasons. Deer browse heavily on low-growing mats, especially in winter.

Dense grey-white scales smother stems; foliage yellows then browns in expanding patches across the mat; dieback spreads if untreated. Treat with dormant horticultural oil in late winter; follow up with summer oil if crawlers are seen; remove and bin severely scaled stems.

Stippled, bronzed foliage with fine webbing; mat looks dull and scorched, especially on dry, exposed slopes in summer. Improve air circulation by thinning dense mats; spray with neem oil or miticide; water deeply in drought to reduce plant stress.

Hanging silk-and-debris cases distributed across the mat; feeding within cases strips foliage and kills patches of ground cover. Hand-pick bags in winter through early spring; spray Bt at egg hatch in late May to early June; spinosad for older larvae.

Wholesale browsing of low-growing mats strips foliage to bare stems; repeated grazing kills large sections and opens ground for weeds. Apply repellent sprays (putrescent egg solid products); install low fencing; choose deer-resistant companion plantings as a buffer; young plants benefit most from protection.