Juniperus thurifera
Encyclopedia
Juniperus thurifera is a species of juniper
native to the mountain
s of the western Mediterranean region, from southern France
(including Corsica
) across eastern and central Spain
to Morocco
and locally in northern Algeria
.
It large shrub
or tree
reaching 6-20 m tall, with a trunk up to 2 m diameter and a broadly conical to rounded or irregular crown. The foliage is strongly aromatic, with a spicy-resinous scent. The leaves
are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 8-10 mm long on seedlings and irregularly on adult plants, and adult scale-leaves 0.6-3 mm long on older plants; they are arranged in decussate opposite pairs. It is dioecious
with separate male and female plants. The cones
are berry-like, 7-12 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-4 seed
s; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 3-4 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.
There are two varieties
, regarded as distinct by some authors, but not by others:
Overall, the species is not considered threatened with healthy population in Spain; however, the African population is threatened by severe overgrazing, mainly by goat
s, and is listed as Endangered.
Juniper
Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
native to the mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
s of the western Mediterranean region, from southern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(including Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
) across eastern and central Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
to Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and locally in northern Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
.
It large shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
or tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
reaching 6-20 m tall, with a trunk up to 2 m diameter and a broadly conical to rounded or irregular crown. The foliage is strongly aromatic, with a spicy-resinous scent. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 8-10 mm long on seedlings and irregularly on adult plants, and adult scale-leaves 0.6-3 mm long on older plants; they are arranged in decussate opposite pairs. It is dioecious
Plant sexuality
Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. This article describes morphological aspects of sexual reproduction of plants....
with separate male and female plants. The cones
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
are berry-like, 7-12 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-4 seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 3-4 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.
There are two varieties
Variety (biology)
In botanical nomenclature, variety is a taxonomic rank below that of species: as such, it gets a three-part infraspecific name....
, regarded as distinct by some authors, but not by others:
- Juniperus thurifera var. thurifera. Spain, France. Mature cones 8-12 mm, with 2-4 seeds.
- Juniperus thurifera var. africana Maire. Morocco, Algeria. Mature cones 7-8 mm, with 1-2 seeds.
Overall, the species is not considered threatened with healthy population in Spain; however, the African population is threatened by severe overgrazing, mainly by goat
Goat
The domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
s, and is listed as Endangered.