Juniper Berries
Juniperus communis is a cypress plant (Cupressaceae). It is therefore closely related to cypresses and false cypresses, but also to the sequoia and the arborvitae (Thuja). Of the approximately 70 species of the genus Juniperus worldwide, only 2 juniper species are found in Central Europe: the common juniper and the poisonous sabina juniper (Juniperus sabina), which is also known as the stinking juniper. After the yew tree, Juniperus communis is the plant species that can grow to be the oldest in our latitudes.
The common juniper is not only widespread in Europe, but also throughout the northern hemisphere, including North America and North and West Asia. It can be found on dry lawns, sparse forests and on rocky slopes. In the Alps it can be found up to an altitude of 2300 metres. The juniper is the eponymous plant species of the so-called juniper heaths. These are cultivated landscapes created by sheep grazing.
Common names: Incense tree, fire tree, Reckholder, Machandel tree, Kranawitter shrub, Grammel perennial, incense shrub, Wachandel, Quailberry shrub, Machandelboom, Jochandel, Kaddig, Kranewitt, Wecholter.
