Practical
Plants

Juniperus scopulorum

Rocky Mountain Juniper

a perennial woody evergreen member of the Juniperus genus in the family Cupressaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
perennial
Foliage
evergreen
Woodiness
woody
Growth rate
slow
Height
10 m
Spread
4 m
Fertility
Self sterile, Wind
Flower type
dioecious
Pollinators
Wind

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Fruit - raw or cooked[2][5][7]. Sweet and fleshy, but strongly flavoured[20][15]. Resinous[14]. Often used as a flavouring, imparting a sage-like taste, for which purpose it is usually dried and ground into a powder[20][7]. The fruit can also be dried and ground into a meal for making mush and cakes[7].The fruits are about 5 - 8mm in diameter[9][14]. The roasted fruit is a coffee substitute[7]. A tea is made from the fruits and young shoots[7].

Product or use
Coffee
Product or use
Condiment
Product or use
Tea
Plant part
Fruit

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Rocky Mountain juniper was widely employed medicinally by many native North American Indian tribes who used it in particular to treat problems connected with the chest and kidneys[16]. It is little, if at all, used in modern herbalism. A tea made from the terminal shoots has been used in the treatment of VD by some N. American Indian tribes[11]. The treatment has to be taken over a long period of time[16]. The fruits are appetizer, diuretic and stomachic[16]. An infusion has been used in the treatment of stomach, kidney and bladder problems[11][16]. An infusion of the twigs has been used in the treatment of fevers, pneumonia, coughs and colds[16]. A poultice of the mashed and dampened branches has been applied to skin sores[16]. The leaves are diaphoretic, disinfectant, febrifuge, haemostatic, laxative, sedative and tonic[22][12][16]. A decoction has been used in the treatment of internal bleeding, constipation and constant coughing[16]. The leaves have been boiled, then mixed with turpentine and used as an external treatment on rheumatic joints[16]. The leaves have been rubbed into the hair in order to treat dandruff[11][16].

Product or use
Antidandruff
Product or use
Appetizer
Product or use
Diaphoretic
Product or use
Disinfectant
Product or use
Diuretic
Product or use
Haemostatic
Product or use
Kidney
Product or use
Laxative
Product or use
Poultice
Product or use
Sedative
Product or use
Stomachic
Product or use
Tonic
Product or use
VD

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

A fragrant wax on the fruits can be obtained by boiling the fruit and skimming off the wax as it floats to the surface. It is used to make aromatic candles but is only present in small quantities[20]. The boughs are used as an incense to fumigate houses and to drive off smells. The wood can be burnt or just hung in the room, or it can be boiled up in water and the water used to wash the walls, floor etc[22]. The bark is employed as a tinder and is also made into a slow match[12]. The dried seeds have been used as beads or as the 'rattle' in rattles[22][12]. The fruits and the leaves are used as an insect repellent[6]. A strong infusion of the cones is used to kill ticks[22]. Plants can be grown as a ground cover, the cultivar 'Repens' is especially suitable[10]. A fairly wind resistant tree, it can be grown as part of a shelterbelt planting[9]. In N. America it is used to some extent in re-afforestation and shelterbelt plantings on the prairies[14]. Wood - extremely tough, aromatic, close grained, light, fairly strong in endwise compression but moderately weak in bending, hard, durable in the soil. Used for interior finishes, bows, hoops, hafts, wheels etc[22][4][14].

Product or use
Beads
Product or use
Incense
Product or use
Parasiticide
Product or use
Repellent
Product or use
Tinder
Product or use
Wax
Product or use
Wood

Ecology and functions

Ecosystem niche
Canopy, Soil surface

Ground cover

Windbreak

Environment

Range
Western N. America - British Columbia to Mexico and California.
Habitat
Scattered singly on dry rocky ridges, foothills and bluffs[19][20] in montane areas or in dry habitats of the coastal forest region[13]. The best specimens are found on slightly alkaline soils[15].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 3+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline, very alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerances
high wind, drought
Wind
Yes
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
tolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The seed requires a period of cold stratification. The seed has a hard seedcoat and can be very slow to germinate, requiring a cold period followed by a warm period and then another cold spell, each of 2 - 3 months duration[17][18]. Soaking the seed for 3 - 6 seconds in boiling water may speed up the germination process[3]. The seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Some might germinate in the following spring, though most will take another year. Another possibility is to harvest the seed 'green' (when the embryo has fully formed but before the seedcoat has hardened). The seedlings can be potted up into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. Grow on in pots until large enough, then plant out in early summer. When stored dry, the seed can remain viable for several years[1]. Cuttings of mature wood, 5 - 10cm with a heel, September/October in a cold frame. Plant out in the following autumn[1][17]. Layering in September/October. Takes 12 months[17].

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Succeeds in most soils, including chalk[9], so long as they are well drained, preferring a neutral or slightly alkaline soil[1][3]. A drought tolerant species once established, succeeding in hot dry positions[9]. Plants are fairly wind-resistant[9]. A long-lived but slow-growing tree in its native range[14], it is very slow growing in Britain where it only makes a shrub[8]. Closely allied to J. virginiana[1][18] and hybridising with it where the ranges meet[13]. It differs mainly in the fruit, which takes two years to mature in this species instead of one[13]. Plants are resistant to honey fungus[21]. This tree is apparently resistant to the rust fungus that attacks the closely related J. virginiana[4]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

    ↩

  3. Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  4. Vines. R. A. Trees of Central Texas. University of Texas Press 1987-00-00 ISBN 0-292-78958-3

    ↩1↩2

  5. Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.

    ↩

  6. Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.

    ↩

  7. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

  8. Mitchell. A. F. Conifers in the British Isles. HMSO 1975-00-00 ISBN 0-11-710012-9

    ↩

  9. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

  10. Thomas. G. S. Plants for Ground Cover J. M. Dent & Sons 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-460-12609-1

    ↩

  11. Weiner. M. A. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books 1980-00-00 ISBN 0-449-90589-6

    ↩1↩2↩3

  12. Whiting. A. F. Ethnobotany of the Hopi North Arizona Society of Science and Art 1939-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  13. Lauriault. J. Identification Guide to the Trees of Canada Fitzhenry and Whiteside, Ontario. 1989-00-00 ISBN 0889025649

    ↩1↩2↩3

  14. Vines. R.A. Trees of North Texas University of Texas Press. 1982-00-00 ISBN 0292780206

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

  15. Elias. T. The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. 1980-00-00 ISBN 0442238622

    ↩1↩2

  16. Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998-00-00 ISBN 0-88192-453-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6↩7↩8↩9↩10

  17. Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  18. Rushforth. K. Conifers. Christopher Helm 1987-00-00 ISBN 0-7470-2801-X

    ↩1↩2

  19. Sargent. C. S. Manual of the Trees of N. America. Dover Publications Inc. New York. 1965-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20278-X

    ↩

  20. Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967-00-00 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  21. RHS. The Garden. Volume 112. Royal Horticultural Society 1987-00-00

    ↩

  22. Turner. N. J. Plants in British Columbian Indian Technology. British Columbia Provincial Museum 1979-00-00 ISBN 0-7718-8117-7

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5

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