PlantPeers
Back to Catalog
No image available
Cupressaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Juniperus osteosperma

Juniperus osteosperma

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthSlow

Juniperus osteosperma is a very cold-hardy plant, able to tolerate temperatures down to around -25°c when fully dormant[1]. It is native to higher elevations and semi-arid to arid, continental climates with hot, dry summers. Mean annual precipitation is usually within the range 300 - 450mm, with extremes from 250 - 500mm. It usually does not grow well in moister climates, even if the winters are mild[1, 2]. Requires a sunny position[3]. Succeeds in most soils if they are well drained, preferring a neutral or slightly alkaline soil[4, 5]. Thrives in calcareous soils[4]. A drought tolerant plant once established, succeeding in hot dry positions[1]. This is one of the most drought resistant junipers in North America[2]. Prefers a pH in the range 7.4 - 8[3]. The plant produces a taproot that extends downwards around 4.5 metres, and lateral roots that may extend as far as 30 metres from the tree, 5 - 15cm below soil level. Most root biomass is within the first 90cm of soil, with fine roots concentrated in the uppermost 45cm or just below the soil surface. The plant does not use soil moisture from summer precipitation and does not have active roots in shallow soils layers during the summer[3]. A slow-growing but long-lived tree, specimens several centuries old have been recorded[6]. Good crops of fruit are produced in alternate years in the wild[6]. Closely related to Juniperus californica[4, 7]. This species is resistant to honey fungus[8]. The seed takes 2 years to mature[1]. Plants are usually dioecious, though occasional trees with both male and female flowers are sometimes found[6]. Male and female plants must usually be grown if seed is required.

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[9, 10]. Soaking the seed for 3 - 6 seconds in boiling water may speed up the germination process[5]. 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[4]. Cuttings of mature wood, 5 - 10cm with a heel, September/early autumn in a cold frame. Plant out in the following autumn[4, 9]. Layering in September/early autumn. Takes 12 months[9]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Juniperus+osteosperma>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  2. [2]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  3. [3]Fire Effects Information System — http://www.feis-crs.org/feis/ ↩︎An on-line information site with comprehensive information on over 1,100 species of plant. Mainly developed to supply information on the effects of fire on plants and animals, it also contains a wealth of other information on the plants
  4. [4]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  5. [5]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  6. [6]The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. — Elias. T. · Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. · 1980 · ISBN 0442238622 ↩︎A very good concise guide. Gives habitats, good descriptions, maps showing distribution and a few of the uses. It also includes the many shrubs that occasionally reach tree proportions.
  7. [7]Manual of the Trees of N. America. — Sargent. C. S. · Dover Publications Inc. New York. · 1965 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ · ISBN 0-486-20278-X ↩︎Two volumes, a comprehensive listing of N. American trees though a bit out of date now. Good details on habitats, some details on plant uses. Not really for the casual reader. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  8. [8]The Garden. Volume 112. — RHS. · Royal Horticultural Society · 1987 · ISBN - ↩︎Snippets of information from the magazine of the RHS. In particular, there are articles on plants that are resistant to honey fungus, oriental vegetables, Cimicifuga spp, Passiflora species and Cucurbits.
  9. [9]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  10. [10]Conifers. — Rushforth. K. · Christopher Helm · 1987 · ISBN 0-7470-2801-X ↩︎Deals with conifers that can be grown outdoors in Britain. Good notes on cultivation and a few bits about plant uses.
  11. [11]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.
  12. [12]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  13. [13]Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. — Saunders. C. F. · Dover Publications · 1976 · ISBN 0-486-23310-3 ↩︎Useful wild plants of America. A pocket guide.
  14. [14]Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. — Harrington. H. D. · University of New Mexico Press · 1967 · ISBN 0-8623-0343-9 ↩︎A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
  15. [15]Ethnobotany of the Hopi — Whiting. A. F. · North Arizona Society of Science and Art · 1939 · ISBN - ↩︎A very good guide the the plant uses of the N. American Hopi Indians.
  16. [16]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
  17. [17]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  18. [18]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  19. [19]CosIng — http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/cosing/ ↩︎CosIng is the European Commission database for information on cosmetic substances and ingredients.
  20. [20]Botanical Beads — Smith R.J. · http://www.botanicalbeads.com/ ↩︎A website looking at seeds that are used for ornament. It is based on a book that the author had written.