Download - Plant of the Month, June 2016 Juniperus thurifera, Spanish ...€¦ · Plant of the Month, June 2016 Juniperus thurifera, Spanish juniper of l s Phone: 5222 6053 Gardens map over

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Juniperusthurifera,SpanishjuniperFriends ofGeelongBotanicGardens

www.friendsgbg.org.auPhone:52226053

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Generalinformation:Junipersareevergreenconifersinthecypressfamily.Theyvaryfromtalltreestolow,trailingshrubs.AllJunipershavedistinctiveseedconesthatlooklikeberriesbutareactually2to3pairsofincurvedbractsfusedtoformaverysmallcone.Juniperscanbemonoeciousordioecious.Juniperusthuriferaisdioecious.Onfemaletreesthe7-10mmcones,whichareterminal,beginasgreen,spendmostoftheirlifeasdarkbluewithawhitishwaxybloomandmaturetodarkpurpleinabout18months.Eachconecontainsupto3seedswhicharedispersedbyanimalsandbirds,particularlythrushes.(Maleconesonmaletreesare3-4mmlong,yellow-greenmaturingtolightbrownandshedpolleninearlySpring.)Juniperusthuriferavar.africanaisthreatenedinthewild,butJuniperusthuriferavar.gallicaremainsastablewoodlandspeciesandtherearefamous,old-growthJuniperusthuriferaforestsinSpain(egintheSierradiSolonco)inwhichthejunipergrowsamongoakspecies.GBGspecimen:OurJuniperusthuriferaisafemaletreewithdarkblueberry-likecones.ItisoneofGBG’sHeritageListedtrees.ItislistedastheonlyconfirmedmemberofthespeciesinVictoria.Itisestimatedtohavebeenplantedinthefirstdecadeofthe20thcenturyandthustobeover100yearsold.Thespeciescanlivefor500years.IliketheplacementofourJuniperusthuriferaneartheCedrusatlantica,oneofitscompanionplantsinthewildintheAtlasMountains.Once,whensmall,ourtreewouldhavehadjuvenileneedle-likeleaves.Itnowhasadultscale-leavesofblue-green.Onceithadthin,darkbrownbark.Withagethathasweatheredtogrey-brown,andhasexfoliatedinstrips.Juniperusthuriferatreesdonotnormallyexceed8metresinheight,sooursisonthetallside.Ithasgrownbeyondbeinganattractivepyramidshapetothemoreirregularshapeofolderage.

JuniperusthuriferaintheGBGCherryCollins

JuniperusthuriferafemaleconesNicolasMontèsn.montes.free.fr

Friends ofGeelongBotanicGardens

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FriendsofGeelongBotanicGardens

www.friendsgbg.org.auwww.geelongaustralia.com.au/gbg

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Uses:ThearomaticfoliageofJuniperusthuriferahaslongbeenusedforincenseinreligiousceremonies(See‘Meaningsofitsname’).Itwasalsousedasfodderfordonkeysandgoats.Thewoodwasusedforconstruction,fencingandtools.Thejuniper‘berries’usedtoflavourgin(‘gin’isashorteningoftheDutchwordforjuniper:‘genever’)comefromadifferentJuniperspecies,Juniperuscommunis.

Family:CupressaceaeGenus:JuniperusSpecies:JuniperusthuriferaCommonnames:SpanishJuniper,IncenseJuniperOrigin:WesternMediterranean:SpainandSouthernFrance(Juniperusthuriferavar.gallica);Morocco(Juniperusthuriferavar.africana)LocationinGBG:IntheOakLawn,betweentheTeaHouseandthePerennialBorder,inthe19thCenturyGarden.Meaningsofitsname:Juniperuscomesfromcombiningparereandjuniomeaning‘toproduce’and‘youth’ie.evergreen.Thuriferacomesfromturifermeaning’incensebearer’.

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JuniperusthuriferaSegovia,SpainLuisFernándezwikimedia.orgCCBY-SA2.1es

Otherspecies(RogerSpencer)EasternPark:J.excelsaGrecianJuniperisHeritagelisted.ItistheonlyoneknowninSEAustralia.J.oxycedrussubsp.oxycedrusPricklyJuniper.GeelongBotanicGardens:J.rigidaistheonlyoneknowninVictoria.J.chinensisChineseJuniperJ.communisCommonJuniper