Eastern Red Cedar

Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana)
DBH 3.68 cm measured on January 28, 2022


From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia,
Juniperus virginiana, also known asred cedar,eastern red cedar,[2][3]Virginian juniper,[4]eastern juniper,red juniper, and other local names, is a species ofjunipernative to eastern North America from southeastern Canada to the Gulf of Mexico and east of the Great Plains.[3]Further west it is replaced by the relatedJuniperus scopulorum(Rocky Mountain juniper) and to the southwest byJuniperus ashei(Ashe juniper).[5][6][7]

Juniperus virginianais a dense slow-growingconiferousevergreentree that may never become more than a bush on poor soil, but is ordinarily from 5–20m (16–66ft) tall, with a short trunk 30–100cm (12–39 inches) in diameter (rarely to 27m (89ft) in height, and 170cm (67 inches) in diameter). The oldest tree reported, fromWest Virginia, was 940 years old.[8]Thebarkis reddish-brown, fibrous, and peels off in narrow strips. Theleavesare of two types; sharp, spreading needle-like juvenile leaves5–10mm (3⁄16–3⁄8in) long, and tightly adpressed scale-like adult leaves2–4mm (1⁄16–3⁄16in) long; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs or occasionally whorls of three. The juvenile leaves are found on young plants up to 3 years old, and as scattered shoots on adult trees, usually in shade. Theseed conesare3–7mm (1⁄8–1⁄4in) long,berry-like, dark purple-blue with a white wax cover giving an overall sky-blue color (though the wax often rubs off); they contain one to three (rarely up to four)seeds, and are mature in 6–8 months from pollination. Thejuniper berryis an important winter food for manybirds, which disperse the wingless seeds. Thepollencones are2–3mm (1⁄16–1⁄8in) long and1.5mm (1⁄16in) broad, shedding pollen in late winter or early spring. The trees are usuallydioecious, with pollen and seed cones on separate trees,[5][6][7]yet some are monoecious.

There are two varieties,[2]which intergrade where they meet:[5][6][7]

Juniperus virginianavar.virginianais called eastern juniper / redcedar. It is found in eastern North America, fromMaine, west to southernOntarioandSouth Dakota, south to northernmostFloridaand southwest into the post oak savannah of east-centralTexas. Cones are larger,4–7mm (3⁄16–1⁄4in); scale leaves are acute at apex and bark is red-brown.Juniperus virginianavar.silicicola(Small) E.Murray(syn.Sabina silicicolaSmall,Juniperus silicicola(Small) L.H.Bailey) is known as southern or sand juniper / redcedar. Its variety name means "flint-dweller", from Latinsilexand-cola. Habitat is along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from the extreme southeastern corner ofVirginia,[9]south to centralFloridaand west to southeastTexas. Cones are smaller,3–4mm (1⁄8–3⁄16in); scale leaves are blunt at apex and the bark is orange-brown. It is treated by some authors at the lower rank of variety, while others treat it as a distinct species.