Juniperus californica

California juniper

Family: Cupressaceae · Type: shrub · Native

California juniper is a native shrub found in the North Coast Ranges Interior, Sierra Nevada Foothills, Sutter Buttes, San Francisco Bay Area, South Coast Ranges, Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges, and Desert regions in dry slopes, flats, and pinyon/juniper woodland at elevations of 50 to 1,500 meters. A distinctive woody plant with multiple trunks growing 1 to 4 meters tall, it features thin gray bark and scale-like leaves arranged in whorls of three. Its leaves are closely appressed with obvious glands, creating a dense, textured appearance. The plant produces small seed cones 7 to 12 millimeters long, which begin blue and mature to a rich red-brown color. Seeds are 5 to 7 millimeters long, pointed, and angular, contributing to the juniper's rugged desert and mountain landscape presence.

Habitat: dry slopes, flats, pinyon/juniper woodland

Elevation: 50-1500 m

Bioregions: NCoRI, SNF, ScV (Sutter Buttes), SnFrB, SCoR, TR, PR, D

California counties: San Bernardino, Riverside, Los Angeles, Kern, Mariposa, San Benito, Orange, Monterey, Alameda, Butte, Contra Costa, Lake, Colusa, Fresno, Imperial, Inyo, Santa Clara, San Luis Obispo, Tehama, Stanislaus, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Joaquin, Tulare, Sutter, Shasta, Glenn, Lassen, Merced, Napa, Placer, Tuolumne, Mendocino, Siskiyou, Modoc, San Francisco, El Dorado, Yolo, Plumas

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.