Scientific name: Juniperus scopulorum
French name: genévrier des montagnes Rocheuses
Secwepemc name: punllp
Pronounced pboon-scs-puh
Other species:
Folk lore: The Juniper Tree fairytale
It is a common savoir in North American legends.
Juniper is often interchangeable with cedar
Rocky Mountain Junipers are native to the BC Interior and inland areas of the American West.
You’ve definitely seen them though you may have not paid them much heed they are unassuming giants perfectly adapted to our unique ecosystem.
Significance to people
Historically the strong wood was used for making instruments, bows, clubs, digging sticks and spoons.
The plant is highly medicinal; the boughs were placed on the fires in sweathouses to dispel spirits and used as disinfectant in homes.
The berries were used in tea to treat stomach ailments, colds and sore throats.
The ash from burnt wood was used to season/salt meat.
In some cultures the tea was used to speed the process of childbirth.
It was also used to disguise hunter’s scent and as fuel for smoking hides.
Significance to ecosystems
Because of Rocky Mountain Juniper’s preference for dry sandy slopes and a shallow but fairly extensive lateral root system. The plant helps slow erosion in a hilly desert prone to flash flooding.
Roots are associated with vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae.
It grows for 10 years before it will disperse mature seeds.
It is an extremely long lived shrub that commonly reaches over 300 years of age. The oldest reported plant is 3000 years old and located in Logan, Utah.
The shade this tree offers on open sunny slopes provides habitat for other plants to grow beneath it.
Significance to animals
Its twigs and leaves are browsed by deer and elk.
The fleshy, berry-like cones are a favored food for many bird species including cedar waxwings.
Additionally, the branches of the Rocky Mountain juniper provide year round shelter for inclement weather and nesting sites for many bird species and invertebrates such as spiders, moths and butterflies.
Because they serve multiple purposes to wildlife they are an extremely valuable part of our local ecosystems.
Where to find them:
Rocky Mountain Juniper loves the sandy, dry and sometimes rocky soils and the low elevations of Kamloops. It is a heat loving plant that prefers south facing slopes and open forest or grasslands.
It grows along the edges of forests of Ponderosa pines and Douglas-fir especially when the trees are sparse and the canopy is open.
Identification
NOT to be mistaken for shrubby juniper cultivars that are frequently found in landscaping.
The Rocky Mountain Juniper is a tree that can reach up to 13 m in height. It is the largest of the junipers with most others being low growing shrubs.
The bark is reddish brown and has flat ridges that can easily be broken or shredded into fibrous strips.
The leaves are waxy pale greyish green that grow opposite and cover the branch fully.
Young plants have more spikey needle-like leaves.
Modern cultivation & usage:
Rocky mountain juniper is not grown for commercial timber harvest anywhere in its natural range. It is seen as a landscape restoration and reclamation plant.
Today the colorful wood is used for carving.
Juniper berries are used to flavour gin. The white powdery coating on the berries is a wild yeast that can be used to start sourdough and vinegar.
The berries are excellent seasoning for rich flavoured meats such as beef and deer. I keep some in my kitchen always.
Ethical harvesting practice:
If you are choosing to harvest the berries following the rule of 3 is a way to ensure you are not going to break the cycle. Take no more than 1/3 of the berries you see and from a group of 3 or more plants.
Boughs broken by winter snows can often be found in the early spring and collected for burning.
Boughs and berries should be dried in a shady open and airy location out of direct light.
References
- Parish, Coupe, Lloyd. (1996) Plants of Southern British Columbia.
- https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/library/documents/treebook/rockymountainjuniper.htm
- https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/farming-natural-resources-and-industry/forestry/tree-species-selection/silvics_jr.pdf
- https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/rocky-mtn-juniper.htm#:~:text=The%20twigs%20and%20and%20leaves,juncos%2C%20sparrows%2C%20and%20robins.
- https://www.fourseasonforaging.com/blog/2019/1/10/juniper
- https://splitrockenvironmental.ca/products/rocky-mountain-juniper-punlhep?variant=40347116044454
- https://www.nwf.org/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2006/Planting-Junipers-for-Wildlife
I’d love to hear about your experiences with this plant.
Visit my Instagram page and look for my post about working with this plant and share your experiences with me.
To learn more about what lives in your local ecosystem join my Thompson Bird Lovers email list where I write about a commonly found local bird each week.
We share this knowledge freely and your support really makes a difference.
If you’ve been reading for a while consider donating.
Your donations help us keep this work free for all.
