Description:
The juniper genus is one of the most widely spread conifers on the planet, from the scorching hills of North Africa to the Greenland tundra. The common juniper (juniperus communis) itself is also very widespread, occupying a good part of the northern half of North America. It is perhaps the most widely distributed conifer in the world. But in our area its distribution is fairly spotty. You can walk for miles through a forest of conifers and rarely see this brushy representative of the juniper genus.
It is rarely more than a few feet tall, growing mostly horizontally, in fact nearer the coast it tends to grow flat on the ground. Its cones look like blueberries to me, usually about a quarter to half inch across.
Personal Observations:
Being relatively rare, I have only come across them twice. Once in the Ruby Mountains a decade ago while I was trying to find a flat spot for my tent near Hidden Lakes at about 9500 feet elevation, I had to muscle through a dense brushy area. When I inspected closer, I found the “bush” was actually a conifer – the common juniper. Much as I tried to find more, I didn’t see any the rest of the several day adventure
More recently in the summer of 2020, I spotted the curious plant in the Strawberry Wilderness Area of eastern Oregon. It was at about 7000 feet elevation. I was luckier than the Rubies because I came across it several times.