Juniperus oxycedrus | |
---|---|
Cade in southern France | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Gymnospermae |
Division: | Pinophyta |
Class: | Pinopsida |
Order: | Cupressales |
Family: | Cupressaceae |
Genus: | Juniperus |
Section: | Juniperus sect. Juniperus |
Species: | J. oxycedrus |
Binomial name | |
Juniperus oxycedrus | |
Natural range | |
Synonyms [2] | |
|
Juniperus oxycedrus, vernacularly called Cade, cade juniper, prickly juniper, prickly cedar, or sharp cedar, is a species of juniper, native across the Mediterranean region, growing on a variety of rocky sites from sea level. [3] [1] The specific epithet oxycedrus means "sharp cedar" and this species may have been the original cedar or cedrus of the ancient Greeks. [4] [5]
Juniperus oxycedrus is very variable in shape, forming a spreading shrub 2–3 metres (6+1⁄2–10 feet) tall to a small erect tree 10–15 m (33–49 ft) tall. It has needle-like leaves in whorls of three; the leaves are green, 5–20 millimetres (1⁄4–3⁄4 inch) long and 1–2 mm (1⁄32–3⁄32 in) broad, with a double white stomatal band (split by a green midrib) on the inner surface. It is usually dioecious, with separate male and female plants. The seed cones are berry-like, green ripening in 18 months to orange-red with a variable pink waxy coating; they are spherical, 7–12 mm (1⁄4–1⁄2 in) diameter, and have three or six fused scales in 1–2 whorls, three of the scales with a single seed. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard seeds in their droppings. The pollen cones are yellow, 2–3 mm (1⁄16–1⁄8 in) long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in late winter or early spring. [3] [6] [7]
As to be expected from the wide range, J. oxycedrus is very variable, and multiple subspecies have been recognised. [3] However, multiple studies have found the subspecies not to be closely related to one another, [6] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] resulting in the recognition of multiple species: [6] [10] [11] [12]
An additional variety or subspecies J. oxycedrus var. badia H.Gay (syn. J. oxycedrus subsp. badia (H.Gay) Debeaux) is distinguished on the basis of larger cones (10–13 mm or 3⁄8–1⁄2 in diameter), tinged purple when mature; it is described from northern Algeria, and also reported from Portugal and Spain. [3] [6]
Other close relatives of J. oxycedrus include Juniperus brevifolia on the Azores, Juniperus cedrus on the Canary Islands and Juniperus formosana in eastern Asia. [3] [6]
Cade oil is the essential oil obtained through destructive distillation of the wood of this shrub. It is a dark, aromatic oil with a strong smoky smell which is used in some cosmetics and (traditional) skin treatment drugs, as well as incense. [13] [14] Cade oil has, on rare occasions, caused severe allergic reactions in infants. [15]
Cedrus, with the common English name cedar, is a genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae. They are native to the mountains of the western Himalayas and the Mediterranean region, occurring at altitudes of 1,500–3,200 m (4,900–10,500 ft) in the Himalayas and 1,000–2,200 m (3,300–7,200 ft) in the Mediterranean.
Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere as far south as tropical Africa, including the Arctic, parts of Asia, and Central America. The highest-known juniper forest occurs at an altitude of 4,900 metres (16,100 ft) in southeastern Tibet and the northern Himalayas, creating one of the highest tree lines on earth.
Juniperus communis, the common juniper, is a species of small tree or shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae. An evergreen conifer, it has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere.
Juniperus osteosperma is a shrub or small tree native to the southwestern United States.
Juniperus excelsa, commonly called the Greek juniper, is a juniper found throughout the eastern Mediterranean, from northeastern Greece and southern Bulgaria across Turkey to Syria and Lebanon, Jordan, the Caucasus mountains, and southern coast of Crimea.
Juniperus drupacea, the Syrian juniper, is a species of juniper native to the eastern Mediterranean region from southern Greece, southern Turkey, western Syria, and Lebanon, growing on rocky sites from 800–1,700 metres in altitude. The species is the sole member of Juniperus sect. Caryocedrus., which is sometimes recognised as genus Arceuthos.
Juniperus occidentalis, known as the western juniper, is a shrub or tree native to the Western United States, growing in mountains at altitudes of 800–3,000 meters (2,600–9,800 ft) and rarely down to 100 m (330 ft). It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because it is a widespread species with an increasing population.
Juniperus sabina, the savin juniper or savin, is a species of juniper native to the mountains of central and southern Europe and western and central Asia, from Spain to eastern Siberia, typically growing at altitudes of 1,000–3,300 metres.
Juniperus thurifera is a species of juniper native to the mountains of the western Mediterranean region, from southern France across eastern and central Spain to Morocco and locally in northern Algeria.
Juniperus cedrus, the Canary Islands juniper, is a species of juniper, native to the western Canary Islands and Madeira, where it occurs at altitudes of 500–2400 m. It is closely related to Juniperus oxycedrus of the Mediterranean region and Juniperus brevifolia of the Azores.
Juniperus procera is a coniferous tree native to mountainous areas in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It is a characteristic tree of the Afromontane flora.
Juniperus deppeana is a small to medium-sized tree reaching 10–15 metres in height. It is native to central and northern Mexico and the southwestern United States.
Juniperus foetidissima, with common names foetid juniper or stinking juniper, is a juniper tree species in the family Cupressaceae.
Juniperus brevifolia, the Azores juniper, is a species of juniper, endemic to the Azores, where it occurs at altitudes of 240–800 metres, rarely up to 1,500 m (4,900 ft). It is closely related to Juniperus oxycedrus of the Mediterranean region and Juniperus cedrus of the neighboring Macaronesian islands. It is threatened by habitat loss.
Juniperus tibetica, the Tibetan juniper, is a species of juniper, native to western China in southern Gansu, southeastern Qinghai, Sichuan, and Tibet Autonomous Region, where it grows at high to very high altitudes of 2,600–4,900 metres. This species has the highest known elevation treeline in the northern hemisphere.
Juniperus deltoides, the Eastern prickly juniper, is a species of juniper native to the eastern Mediterranean. Although it is sometimes considered a subspecies of Juniperus oxycedrus, phylogenetic studies have found the two are not closely related.
Juniperus navicularis, the Portuguese prickly juniper, is a species of juniper endemic to the southwestern Iberian Peninsula. Although it is sometimes considered a subspecies of the Mediterranean Juniperus oxycedrus, phylogenetic studies have found the two are not closely related.
Juniperus lutchuensis or Ryūkyū juniper is a species of juniper native to the Ryūkyū Islands, Izu Islands, Izu Peninsula, and Bōsō Peninsula, Japan.
Juniperus macrocarpa is a species of juniper, native across the northern Mediterranean Region from southwestern Spain east to western Turkey and Cyprus, growing on coastal sand dunes from sea level up to 75 metres in altitude. A single, isolated tree is found further west, in a cliff in southern Portugal.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)