How do I overwinter a Juniper?

[Manix5]

I bought this tree in September at an auction. I believe it is a Juniper. I want to be sure to keep it alive for next year. I live in Indianapolis. I am told the tree is 36 years old. I have a glassed in porch that is attached to the house, but it is unheated. Last year I kept my Chinese Elm out there through the winter and it did fine. My question is will this be cold enough to let the tree go dormant, or should I take it to my garage. If I take it out there will the tree need light while it is dormant? Any advice is appreciated.
Thanks,
Brad
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[OROZCONLECHE]

I don't know anything about bonsai but that is one nice looking Bonsai

[TomM]

Your juniper is quite nice. It really should be kept outdoors - allowed to freeze, go dormant, sleep under the snow till Spring. Protection from wind is important. That's the reason some people like to put them in an unheated shed or garage for the Winter - for wind protection not to be any warmer - they are very cold hardy. A blanket of mulch is good. While dormant they do not need light. In the hills (mountains) they are totally beneath several feet of snow.

Sun can be a problem in Winter. It can heat the pot and thaw the soil too early and too often. Sun coming through the glass of your attached porch would make that problem worse. OK for the Chinese elm but not for junipers. They have totally different needs.

So, if you are choosing between the glassed porch or the unheated garage, go with the garage and cover the soil with snow.

[Kaerihana]

I keep mine in a attached and unheated garage here in wisconsin. It does however warm up some days above freezing. To prevent repeated freeze and thaw of mine I keep a small heater inside that keeps the temp between freezing and 40 degrees. I also provide a small amount of artificial light for this reason The timer is adjusted 1 time per month to mach close to the amount of natural daylight outside for this time of year. This just because of the temp fluctuation on some mild days getting higher then the the 40 or so that I understand they need no light at all to survive. keep in mind the above 40 temp is rare except winters start and long end here. I have read that depending how the cutting or tree has been wintered since it was sprouted dictates its tolerance to cold, so if kept in a milder dormancy could cause it to die if I let it feel the 0 degrees the garage can get during the winter since the frost tolerance will be lower then some other types of juniper like shimpaku . To be honest I am very new at this and have no idea where any of my trees were sprouted or how they were cared for. This just works for me here in wisconsin and allows me not to worry about the the temp while working. or away

[gbhunter77]

Is this a blue star juniper?