Common Name: Rocky Mountain Juniper

General Information

Juniperus scopulorum is an evergreen tree with a conic to occasionally rounded crown; it can grow up to 20 metres tall. The tree is usually single-stemmed, rarely multi-stemmed and, in open positions, is usually branched down to ground level[, ].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food, medicine and source of materials. It can be used as a pioneer in restoring woodland, is used in shelterbelt plantings and makes a good ornamental, where selected cultivars can be used as ground cover.
The plant has an enormous range and is adundant. It is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Western N. America - British Columbia to Alberta, south through Oregon and North Dakota to Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico

Habitat

Deciduous and coniferous woodland and scrub to montane coniferous forest where it is often on exposed rocky slopes and ridges, along streams it occurs on dry sites; occasionally foring pure stands in the north; at elevations from 500 - 2,700 metres[]

Properties

Conservation Status	Least Concern
Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	10.00 m
Growth Rate	Slow
Pollinators	Wind
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Juniperus scopulorum is a very cold-hardy plant, able to tolerate temperatures down to around -35°c when fully dormant[]. It grows in a mostly continental climate, dry (in the rain shadow of coastal mountain ranges and in the SW) or subhumid with scattered summer storms, and has extreme differences in temperature between summer and winter[]. It can succeed with only 250mm of rainfall in a year, and is also found in areas with 660mm[]. Due to its very wide latitudinal distribution certain provenances of the species and at least some of its cultivars will be suitable for a particular climate condition in temperate regions of the world, ranging from the colds of Canada to the hot summers of Mexico[].
Requires a sunny position. Succeeds in most soils, including chalk[], so long as they are well drained, preferring a neutral or slightly alkaline soil[, ]. This species is most common in the wild on rocky terrain on soils derived from basalt, limestone and shale, usually eroded and shallow, quickly drained and mostly nutrient-poor[]. A drought tolerant species once established, succeeding in hot dry positions[]. Plants are fairly wind-resistant[].
The tree's dense branches, cold hardiness, drought tolerance, and relative freedom from pests make it a desirable choice for windbreaks and ornamental plantings[].
A long-lived but slow-growing tree in its native range[], it is very slow growing in Britain where it only makes a shrub[].
Trees usually live 250 - 300 years or more; one specimen in Utah is believed to be around 3,000 years old[].
Younger trees have a thin bark and are easily killed by fires; older trees develop a thicker bark and and open crown, and can survive moderate fires[].
Closely allied to Juniperus virginiana[, ] and hybridising with it where the ranges meet[]. It differs mainly in the fruit, which takes two years to mature in this species instead of one[].
Plants are resistant to honey fungus[]. This tree is apparently resistant to the rust fungus that attacks the closely related Juniperus virginiana[].
A dioecious species - both male and female forms must be grown if fruit and seed are required.

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked[, , ]. Sweet and fleshy, but strongly flavoured[, ]. A resinous pulp[, ]. Often used as a flavouring, imparting a sage-like taste, for which purpose it is usually dried and ground into a powder[, ]. The fruit can also be dried and ground into a meal for making mush and cakes[]. The seed cones mature in 2 years and are of two distinct sizes. Dark blue-black in colour, the globose to two-lobed cones are 6 - 9mm in diameter, containing 1 - 3 seeds[].

The roasted fruit is a coffee substitute[].

A tea is made from the fruits and young shoots[].

Medicinal

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[]. 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[]. The treatment has to be taken over a long period of time[].

The fruits are appetizer, diuretic and stomachic[]. An infusion has been used in the treatment of stomach, kidney and bladder problems[, ].

An infusion of the twigs has been used in the treatment of fevers, pneumonia, coughs and colds[]. A poultice of the mashed and dampened branches has been applied to skin sores[].

The leaves are diaphoretic, disinfectant, febrifuge, haemostatic, laxative, sedative and tonic[, , ]. A decoction has been used in the treatment of internal bleeding, constipation and constant coughing[].
The leaves have been boiled, then mixed with turpentine and used as an external treatment on rheumatic joints[].
The leaves have been rubbed into the hair in order to treat dandruff[, ].

Agroforestry Uses:

Juniperus scopulorum is a moderately aggressive taxon, expanding into grasslands due to lack of fires[]. It can be used as a pioneer species for restoring native woodland[].
Plants can be grown as a ground cover, the cultivar 'Repens' is especially suitable[].
A fairly wind resistant tree, it can be grown as part of a shelterbelt planting[]. In N. America it is used to some extent in re-afforestation and shelterbelt plantings on the prairies[].
It is occasionally used for erosion control,, and the tree has been used for revegetating mine spoils in Kansas[].

Other Uses

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[].
An essentail oil obtained from the leaves and the stems of the plant is used as an ingredient in commercial cosmetic preparations for skin tonics and as a masking agent for other aromas[].

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[].

The bark is employed as a tinder and is also made into a slow match[].

The dried seeds have been used as beads or as the 'rattle' in rattles[, ].

The fruits and the leaves are used as an insect repellent[]. A strong infusion of the cones is used to kill ticks[].

The wood is extremely tough, aromatic, close grained, light in weight, fairly strong in endwise compression but moderately weak in bending, hard, durable in the soil. It is used for furniture-making, interior finishes, novelty items, chests, bows, hoops, hafts, wheels etc[, , , ]. The wood has often been used for fencing since it lasts a long time in the ground[, ].
The wood makes a good fuel[].

Propagation

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[, ]. Soaking the seed for 3 - 6 seconds in boiling water may speed up the germination process[]. 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[].
Cuttings of mature wood, 5 - 10cm with a heel, September/early autumn in a cold frame. Plant out in the following autumn[, ].
Layering in September/early autumn. Takes 12 months[].