''Juniperus oxycedrus'', vernacularly called Cade, cade juniper, prickly juniper, prickly cedar, or sharp cedar, is a species of

juniper Junipers are coniferous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Juniperus'' () of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on the taxonomy, between 50 and 67 species of junipers are widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, from the Arcti ...

, native across the Mediterranean region from Algeria and Portugal, north to southern France, east to westernmost Iran, and south to Lebanon and Israel, growing on a variety of rocky sites from sea level up to in elevation.Farjon, A. (2005). ''Monograph of Cupressaceae and Sciadopitys''. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The specific epithet ''oxycedrus'' means "sharp cedar" and this species may have been the original cedar or '' cedrus'' of the ancient Greeks.

Description

''Juniperus oxycedrus'' is very variable in shape, forming a spreading

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

tall to a small erect tree tall. It has needle-like

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

in whorls of three; the leaves are green, long and broad, with a double white stomatal band (split by a green midrib) on the inner surface. It is usually

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...

, with separate male and female plants. The seed cones are

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

-like, green ripening in 18 months to orange-red with a variable pink waxy coating; they are spherical, diameter, and have three or six fused scales in 1–2 whorls, three of the scales with a single seed. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard seeds in their droppings. The

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...

cones are yellow, long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in late winter or early spring.Adams, R. P. (2004). ''Junipers of the World''. Trafford. As to be expected from the wide range, ''J. oxycedrus'' is very variable. One recent studyAdams, R. P. (2000). Systematics of Juniperus section Juniperus based on leaf essential oils and RAPD DNA fingerprinting. ''Biochem. Syst. Ecol''. 28: 515-52
available online (pdf file)
Adams, R. P. (2004). ''Juniperus deltoides'', a new species and nomenclatural notes on ''Juniperus polycarpos'' and ''J. turcomanica'' (Cupressaceae). ''Phytologia'' 86: 49 - 5
available online (pdf file)
splits it into three species, though other authorities do not accept this: *''Juniperus oxycedrus'' L. – Western prickly juniper. Southwest Europe, in eastern Portugal and Spain east to southern France, northwest Italy,

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

, and Sardinia, and northwest Africa from Morocco east to Tunisia. Leaves long (), narrow-based; cones smooth. *''Juniperus navicularis'' Gand. (syn. ''J. oxycedrus'' subsp. ''transtagana'') – Portuguese prickly juniper. Coastal southwest Portugal. Leaves short (); cones smooth. *''Juniperus deltoides'' R.P.Adams – Eastern prickly juniper. Central Italy east to Iran and Israel. Leaves long (), broad-based; cones with raised scale edges.

Subspecies

An additional variety or subspecies ''J. oxycedrus'' var. ''badia'' H.Gay (syn. ''J. oxycedrus'' subsp. ''badia'' (H.Gay) Debeaux) is distinguished on the basis of larger cones ( diameter), tinged purple when mature; it is described from northern Algeria, and also reported from Portugal and Spain. A further species '' Juniperus macrocarpa'', confined to Mediterranean coastal sands, is more distinct but has also often been treated as a subspecies of prickly juniper, as ''J. oxycedrus'' subsp. ''macrocarpa''; it differs in the broader leaves ( wide), and larger cones ( wide). Other close relatives of ''J. oxycedrus'' include '' Juniperus brevifolia'' on the Azores, '' Juniperus cedrus'' on the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

and '' Juniperus formosana'' in eastern Asia.

Uses

Cade oil is the

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...

obtained through destructive distillation of the wood of this shrub. It is a dark, aromatic oil with a strong smoky smell which is used in some cosmetics and (traditional) skin treatment drugs, as well as incense. Cade oil has, on rare occasions, caused severe allergic reactions in infants. Image:Juniperus oxycedrus.jpg, Leaves and mature cones, Spain Image:Cade2.jpg, Leaves and immature cones, southern France Image:Juniperus oxycedrus 20120826 3.jpg, Central Spain Image:Juniperus oxycedrus 20120826 2.jpg, Bark, Central Spain

References

External links

''Juniperus oxycedrus''
- information, genetic conservation units and related resources. European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN) {{Taxonbar, from=Q184300 oxycedrus Flora of Europe Flora of North Africa Flora of Western Asia Trees of Mediterranean climate Least concern plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Dioecious plants Flora of the Mediterranean Basin