A large group of related plants in cypress / juniper / redwood  family Cupressaceae (in 🌲︎ conifer  order Pinales ), including species common juniper  Juniperus communis, creeping juniper  Juniperus horizontalis and ◼︎ eastern red cedar  Juniperus virginiana.   Please let us know which other species you would like to see here, using the button at the bottom of this page.

Different species are native 🌐︎ worldwide, mostly in the Northern Hemisphere.   🗺 Map by county (🇺🇸 USA-48) (color key).

Junipers are the ❄ winter host for 🍄︎⚕︎ fungal disease trellis rust (TR)  Gymnosporangium sabinae.  Adobe Acrobat Reader file   Which then transfers to nearby 🍐︎ pear  genus Pyrus as the ⚘ summer host.  Then back again!

So in areas that may have this disease, do not plant these two hosts within 300 m (1000 ft) of each other!

Uses by native peoples
(Ethnobotany database)

Juniperus hosts caterpillars of 41 species
of butterflies and moths, in some areas.

Male trees score 🤧︎ most allergenic (10 out of 10) on the OPALS™ Ogren Plant Allergy Scale.

Junipers are 🌲︎ conifers, which:

  • do not enclose its seeds in any ovary structure ('naked' seeds or gymnosperm ), and
  • package their seeds in cones (apparently a different type of female reproductive structure).
Junipers violate both these rules, with seed cones that are fleshy and berry-like.

Learn more about juniper genus Juniperus (Juniperus spp.)

🔍︎ 🔍︎ images Discover Life Encyclopedia of Life Gymnosperm database Michigan Flora Minnesota Wildflowers Flora of North America NRCS PLANTS db Wikipedia

Navigate to pages that link here

🏠︎ 🌲︎ conifer  order Pinales cypress / juniper / redwood  family Cupressaceae
common juniper  Juniperus communis creeping juniper  Juniperus horizontalis ◼︎ eastern red cedar  Juniperus virginiana

🍐︎ common pear  Pyrus communis