Juniperus osteosperma

Botanical Description

Juniperus osteosperma is an evergreen shrub or a tree with a rounded crown; it usually grows up to 6 metres tall, occasionally reaching 12 metres, and can be single or multi-stemmed[ 270 Title Flora of N. America Publication Author Website http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses. ]. The plant has a wide range of traditional uses as a food, medicine and source of materials. It has excellent potential for use as a pioneer species for restoring native woodland, is sometimes used as a 'Christmas Tree' and is often grown as an ornamental. Juniperus osteosperma is the most wide-spread species of juniper in the extensive Pinyon-Juniper woodland formation of the SW USA; it has little commercial value and occurs often on rocky escarpments and plateaus where few other plants get a foothold. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].