Juniperus sabina
Encyclopedia
Juniperus sabina is a species of juniper
native to the mountain
s of central and southern Europe
and western and central Asia
, from Spain
east to eastern Siberia
, typically growing at altitudes of 1,000-3,300 m.
, very variable in shape, reaching 1–4 m tall. The leaves
are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 5–10 mm long, and adult scale-leaves 1–2 mm long on slender shoots 0.8–1 mm thick. Juvenile leaves are found mainly on seedlings but mature shrubs sometimes continue to bear some juvenile leaves as well as adult, particularly on shaded shoots low in the crown. It is largely dioecious
with separate male and female plants, but some individual plants produce both sexes. The cones
are berry-like, 5–9 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-3 (rarely 4 or 5) seed
s; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 2–4 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.
There are two varieties
, treated by some botanists as distinct species:
Juniperus sabina is a popular ornamental shrub in garden
s and park
s, with numerous named cultivar
s selected.
The hybrid between Juniperus chinensis
and Juniperus sabina, known as Juniperus × pfitzeriana (Pfitzer Juniper, synonym J. × media), is found in the wild where the two species meet in northwestern China
, and is also very common as a cultivated ornamental plant
. It is a larger shrub, growing to 3–6 m tall.
All parts of the plant are poison
ous due to several toxic compounds including ethereal oils.
This plant is the alternate (telial) host of the Pear Rust fungus Gymnosporangium fuscum
.
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 central and southern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and western and central Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, from 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...
east to eastern Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, typically growing at altitudes of 1,000-3,300 m.
Descriptions
It is a shrubShrub
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...
, very variable in shape, reaching 1–4 m tall. 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 5–10 mm long, and adult scale-leaves 1–2 mm long on slender shoots 0.8–1 mm thick. Juvenile leaves are found mainly on seedlings but mature shrubs sometimes continue to bear some juvenile leaves as well as adult, particularly on shaded shoots low in the crown. It is largely 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, but some individual plants produce both sexes. 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, 5–9 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-3 (rarely 4 or 5) 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 2–4 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....
, treated by some botanists as distinct species:
- Juniperus sabina var. sabina. Juvenile foliage rare in adult plants.
- Juniperus sabina var. davurica (Pallas) Farjon (syn. J. davurica Pallas). Juvenile foliage frequent in adult plants.
Juniperus sabina is a popular ornamental shrub in garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
s and park
Park
A park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state, or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. It may consist of rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas. Many parks are legally protected by...
s, with numerous named cultivar
Cultivar
A cultivar'Cultivar has two meanings as explained under Formal definition. When used in reference to a taxon, the word does not apply to an individual plant but to all those plants sharing the unique characteristics that define the cultivar. is a plant or group of plants selected for desirable...
s selected.
The hybrid between Juniperus chinensis
Juniperus chinensis
Juniperus chinensis grows as a shrub or tree with a very variable in shape, reaching 1-20 m tall. This native of northeast Asia grows in China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea and the southeast of Russia.-Growth:...
and Juniperus sabina, known as Juniperus × pfitzeriana (Pfitzer Juniper, synonym J. × media), is found in the wild where the two species meet in northwestern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and is also very common as a cultivated ornamental plant
Ornamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
. It is a larger shrub, growing to 3–6 m tall.
All parts of the plant are poison
Poison
In the context of biology, poisons are substances that can cause disturbances to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism....
ous due to several toxic compounds including ethereal oils.
This plant is the alternate (telial) host of the Pear Rust fungus Gymnosporangium fuscum
Gymnosporangium fuscum
Gymnosporangium sabinae is a fungal heteroecious plant pathogen with Juniperus as the primary host and Pyrus , Malus , or Crataegus as secondary hosts...
.