Juniperus osteosperma

Utah juniper

Family: Cupressaceae · Type: tree · Native

Utah juniper is a native tree found in the Mojave Desert Mountains, San Gabriel Mountains, San Bernardino Mountains, and Great Basin in pinyon and juniper woodland at elevations of 1,300 to 2,600 meters. While not flowering with traditional blossoms, this tree produces small pollen cones 2 to 3 millimeters long and seed cones 5 to 13 millimeters spheric, maturing from brown to red-brown. Growing as a single-trunked tree 1 to 8 meters tall, it features thin gray-brown bark that ages to ash-white with a distinctive appearance. Its leaves are uniquely scale-like, closely appressed and arranged in four ranks, with an obscure gland and generally opposite positioning. The tree's seeds are strongly angled, ovoid, and 3 to 4 millimeters long, typically single within each cone.

Habitat: Pinyon/juniper woodland

Elevation: 1300-2600 m

Bioregions: SnGb, SnBr, GB, DMtns

California counties: Inyo, Mono, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Lassen, Tulare, Modoc, Shasta, Kern, Fresno, Alpine, Riverside

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