Blue Point Juniper with Brown Center？

Question

I live in SoCal in the Inland Empire valley in zone 9b.

I planted a Blue Point Juniper in my raised planter back in June where it gets 6-8 hours of sunlight each day. recently I’ve noticed that the center of the tree has turned brown.

I’m new to this type of tree so I am unsure if this is natural for this species or if there is a problem that I need to take care of.

(Pictures provided）

Any help is appreciated

Answer 1

Since the exterior foliage and new growth looks healthy in the photo, I suspect it is just the interior shaded growth that has browned from lack of sunlight.
But there is a possibility of an infestation of mites or spider-mites, which often is concentrated in the interior foliage.
It’s difficult to diagnose yourself if you don’t know what to look for because mites are very tiny. You can take a sample in a plastic ziplock bag to your local UC Cooperative Extension or to a local nursery.
Or it wouldn’t hurt to start a preventive spray program with 70% Neem Oil. There are products available at garden centers and online. Be sure to follow directions on the label for effective use and precautions. It takes repeated applications through the growing season to be effective.

By the way, that’s a very restricted planter space for the juniper. They get quite big you know.