Juniper ‘Silver Mist’

* Common name: Juniper ‘Silver Mist’

* Botanical name: Juniperus conferta ‘Silver Mist’

* What it is: A wide, ground-hugging needled evergreen with stiff, narrow, silvery foliage. Tolerates heat, drought and humidity well, and although it does best in full sun, tolerates some shade better than most junipers.

* Size: 1 foot tall and 5 feet wide in about 10 years.

* Where to use: Mainly used as an evergreen groundcover, either underplanting taller shrubs and trees or covering a sunny bank or large open area. Best in full sun to light afternoon shade.

* Care: Keep damp the first season, then ‘Silver Mist’ should never need supplemental water. Fertilize with an annual spring scattering of acidifying, organic, granular fertilizer. Pruning not needed unless it grows beyond allotted space, in which case the plant can be snipped back with hand pruners as needed. It’s best to shorten each arm back to a joint at the desired width as opposed to shearing the whole plant around the perimeter. That maintains a more natural look.

* Great partner: Underplant any shade tree or white- or pink-flowering ornamental tree with a mass of ‘Silver Mist’ planted 5 feet apart. ‘Silver Mist’ also works well underneath tall shrubs such as crape myrtle, hydrangea ‘Pinky Winky’ or ‘Limelight’ and purple butterfly bush.