Handbook of Trees of the jSToktjiekx States and Canada. 



47 



The Juniper though generally only an 

 humble shrub has tiie distinction of being the 

 most widely distributed tree of the northern 

 hemisphere. It is found not only ranging 

 over the greater part of the North American 

 continent but also central and northern Eu- 

 rope, and Asia as far south as nearly to the 

 Mediterranean and to tlie Ilimilayas, but only 

 in very limited areas of this vast domain does 

 it become a tree; in America only on the hills 

 of a few counties of southern Illinois. It 

 usually sends out a cluster of stems close to 

 the ground and these curving upwards form a 

 flat saucer-shaped bush, sometimes 20 ft. across 

 and only 3 or 4 ft. high. When a tree it attains 

 the height of 20 or 30 ft. with an irregular 

 open head and short trunk sonictimcs 10-12 in. 

 in diameter. 



Its wood is hard, but rather light and easily 

 worked, verj' close-grained, durable and of a 

 light brown color with lighter sap-wood. In 

 Europe it is sometimes used for fuel and in 

 India burned as incense. In Europe its sweet- 

 ish fruit is used as an ingredient of gin. 



Leaves in whorls of 3, spreading. V4-V2 in. 

 long, often curved, rigid with sharp tips, articulate 

 at base, lustrous dark green or bronze-green below, 

 snowy white with bands of stomata ahovo : tnids 

 scaly. Flowers in late spring, axillary : sfami- 

 nate composed of 5 or 6 whorls each of :'. stamens 

 bearing broad connectives and ?> or 4 antlicr-ccUs : 

 pistillate consisting of 3 ovules open at apex, 

 alternate, with 3 minute fleshy scales and sur- 

 rounded with ."> or r> whorls "of ternate scales. 

 Fruit matures the third season, subglobose, about 

 14 in. in diameter, dark blue with bloom, sweet 

 flesh and 1-3 bony seeds which are about % in. 

 long, angled, and penetrated with resin glands. 



