Juniperus foetidissima
Encyclopedia
Juniperus foetidissima (Foetid Juniper or Stinking Juniper) is a juniper
native to southeastern Europe
and southwestern Asia
, from southern Albania
and northern Greece
across Turkey
to Syria
and the Lebanon
, the Caucasus
mountains, the Alborz
mountains of northern Iran
, and east to southwestern Turkmenistan
. There is also an isolated population in the Crimea
.
It is a medium-sized tree
reaching 6-25 m tall, with a trunk up to 2.5 m diameter and a broadly conical to rounded or irregular crown. The leaves
are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 8-10 mm long on seedlings and re-growth after branch damage, and adult scale-leaves 2-3 mm long on older plants. It is largely dioecious
with separate male and female plants, but some individual plants are monoecious, producing both sexes. The cones
are berry-like, 7-13 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-2 (rarely 3) seed
s; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 2-3.5 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.
It often occurs together with Juniperus excelsa
, being distinguished from it by its thicker shoots 1.2-2 mm diameter (0.7-1.3 mm diameter in J. excelsa), and green, rather than grey-green, leaves. The crushed foliage has a strong foetid smell, from which the species gets its name.
A number of notably large specimens are specially protected in Turkey; the largest is the Aslanardıçı ("Lion Juniper"), 25 m tall and 3.38 m trunk diameter, estimated to be 1,700 years old (Boscawen 1994).
Juniper
Junipers are coniferous plants in the genus Juniperus of the cypress family Cupressaceae. Depending on taxonomic viewpoint, there are between 50-67 species of juniper, widely distributed throughout the northern hemisphere, from the Arctic, south to tropical Africa in the Old World, and to the...
native to southeastern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and southwestern Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, from southern Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
and northern Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
across Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
to Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and the Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
mountains, the Alborz
Alborz
Alborz , also written as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran stretching from the borders of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the northwest to the southern end of the Caspian Sea, and ending in the east at the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan...
mountains of northern Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, and east to southwestern Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
. There is also an isolated population in the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
.
It is a medium-sized tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
reaching 6-25 m tall, with a trunk up to 2.5 m diameter and a broadly conical to rounded or irregular crown. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are of two forms, juvenile needle-like leaves 8-10 mm long on seedlings and re-growth after branch damage, and adult scale-leaves 2-3 mm long on older plants. It is largely dioecious
Plant sexuality
Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. This article describes morphological aspects of sexual reproduction of plants....
with separate male and female plants, but some individual plants are monoecious, producing both sexes. The cones
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
are berry-like, 7-13 mm in diameter, blue-black with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain 1-2 (rarely 3) seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s; they are mature in about 18 months. The male cones are 2-3.5 mm long, and shed their pollen in early spring.
It often occurs together with Juniperus excelsa
Juniperus excelsa
Juniperus excelsa is a juniper found throughout the eastern Mediterranean, from northeastern Greece and southern Bulgaria across Turkey to Syria and the Lebanon, and the Caucasus mountains. A subspecies, J. excelsa subsp...
, being distinguished from it by its thicker shoots 1.2-2 mm diameter (0.7-1.3 mm diameter in J. excelsa), and green, rather than grey-green, leaves. The crushed foliage has a strong foetid smell, from which the species gets its name.
A number of notably large specimens are specially protected in Turkey; the largest is the Aslanardıçı ("Lion Juniper"), 25 m tall and 3.38 m trunk diameter, estimated to be 1,700 years old (Boscawen 1994).