Looking after Juniper Ecology, Conservation and Folklore Written by Lena K. Ward Edited by Catharine H. Shellswell Looking after Juniper – Ecology, Conservation and Folklore Looking after Juniper Ecology, Conservation and Folklore Citation This report should be cited as: Ward, L.K. and Shellswell, C.H. (2017) Looking after Juniper: Ecology, Conservation and Folklore. Plantlife, Salisbury. Acknowledgements Although this is a revision of the 2003 juniper dossier (revised in 2007) it has been greatly updated and we would like to thank the following people for information and assistance: Ann Appleyard, Ingvild Austad, Alice Broome, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Defence Science Technology Laboratory at Porton Down (particularly Stuart Corbett and Terry Jeanes), Mike Douglas, Sue Fitzpatrick, Mike Grant, the late Jim Grant, Shelagh MacCartan, Tony Mundell, David Pashby, Bob Strouts and Tim Wilkins and Miles King both formally of Plantlife. A great amount of knowledge lies within their expertise and this document has been made much greater by their time and assistance. In addition, this document would not be possible without the commitment of volunteers that survey and monitor juniper across Britain. We are indebted to these people for their help. We would like to thank the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland for the use of data collated on their database to produce the juniper distribution maps and the volunteer surveyors and coordinators at Plantlife that undertook the Saving Lowland Juniper Project 2013-2015, the Juniper Project in Scotland 2003- 2005, and the Saving Scotland’s Juniper Project 2013-2015. We are very grateful for the financial support from Natural England that has part-funded this publication. 2 Looking after Juniper – Ecology, Conservation and Folklore Juniperus communis L. Cupressaceae England Common Juniper, Dwarf Juniper, Bastard’s Bane/Killer, Savin (Horse Savin), Melmot berries, Geneva (gin) Wales Meryw (Merywen), Dwarf Yew Scotland Aiteann (Aittin, Aiten, Aitnach), Gaelic Samd, Iubhair (Iubhar-beinne) Ireland Iubhar Creige, Yew of the Rocks © L.K. Ward Status: British populations belong to the species Juniperus communis var. communis (including former sub-species hemispherica) and var. saxatilis (including former subspecies nana). England Identified as a species of conservation concern for England under Section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 Scotland Identified as a species of principal importance on the Scottish Biodiversity List 2005 Wales Identified as a species of conservation concern for Wales under Section 42 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 Northern Ireland Identified as a priority species requiring conservation action in the Northern Ireland Biodiversity Strategy 2002 GB Red List (IUCN) Juniperus communis is considered to be of ‘Least concern’ but ‘one to watch in the future’ Juniperus var. communis (hemispherica – formerly J. communis ssp. hemispherica) is considered to be ‘Nationally rare’ and occurs in two 10 km squares in the UK (15 or fewer hectads) UK Biodiversity Juniperus communis is a priority species on the UK BAP Action Plan (BAP) Juniperus var. communis (hemispherica formerly J. communis ssp. hemispherica) has a separate BAP (see section 10.3) ‘Worthy Species’ Botanical Society of the British Isles (Axiophyte) http://www.bsbi.org.uk/axiophytes.html Occurs in 4214 10 km squares in the UK (2015) (http://www.brc.ac.uk) 3 Looking after Juniper – Ecology, Conservation and Folklore Summary associated with superstitions, such as the death of anyone felling a bush within a year, and in visions and dreams are meant to symbolise unluckiness, Juniper is one of three native conifer species in but picking berries in the winter is meant to Britain and Ireland and can form tree-like erect symbolise prosperity and just dreaming of berries bushes or procumbent shrubs. It is dioecious with symbolises being given great honors. separate male bushes producing pollen cones and female bushes producing seed cones also known as Extracts of juniper foliage, bark, wood and berries berries, galbuli or strobili. and juniper oil have been recorded for treatments of many different ailments. Modern medicine still The classification of juniper is under review at uses elements found in juniper to treat diabetes, the time of writing this document. In Britain and high blood pressure and bronchitis, and medicinal Ireland, it is expected that there will probably be research is still continuing. two accepted varieties of juniper that correspond with our three sub-species: Juniper is likely to have been used as flavouring in drinks since very early times, with distillation Juniperus communis L. var. communis spreading from Arabia. From the Middle Ages = J. communis ssp. communis onwards, the distillation process was progressively = J. communis ssp. hemispherica refined and alcoholic drinks with juniper, commonly (Jacq. & C. Presl) Parl. known as gin although there are other types, are now a multi-million pound business. Gin cocktails Juniperus communis L. var. saxatilis Pall. first became very fashionable in the 1920s, and = J. communis ssp. nana (Willd.) Syme there are hundreds of different commercially made = J. communis ssp. nana (Willd.) Baumg. brands of gin. Sales of gin overtook those of whisky = J. communis ssp. alpina (Jacq. & C.Presl) Parl. in 2015 for the first time in the UK. Var. communis (ssp. communis) is the typical Juniper berries are used as flavouring in cookery, juniper found across lowland Britain and may form particularly with savoury meat dishes of wild erect or procumbent bushes. Var. communis (ssp. game. It may also be used to preserve food through hemispherica) is generally procumbent and much smoking. Sweet foods, like yogurt, chocolate and rarer, only being recognised from the Lizard in jams, may also be flavoured with juniper. Cornwall and is the subject of a Biodiversity Action Plan. Var. saxatilis (ssp. nana) is the mountain or Juniper wood is hard, has a fine grain, and is dwarf juniper growing at higher latitudes, and in resistant to fungal infection with anti-microbial and England and Wales at higher altitudes but can be anti-fungal properties. It is often sought for making found at sea level in Scotland. There are a huge into small objects, such as bowls, although larger variety of growth forms within each variety trees from other species of juniper have been used and sub-species. to make chests. It has also been used for fencing, posts and hayricks. At the local scale there is little genetic differentiation between individual bushes, and It is also cultivated for its herbal qualities and there is restricted gene flow in Britain and Ireland. aromatic berries as well as for horticultural There is a danger of further restriction to gene purposes as the shrub has so many forms and flow and genetic drift in the future as juniper colours and can withstand clipping. populations become smaller and more isolated. Juniperus communis is the most widespread of all There are many common names for juniper across the conifers in the world, occurring in both eastern the world. In the UK there are 44 occurrences and western hemispheres. In Britain and Ireland, of place names on Ordnance Survey maps that the most extensive populations are in Scotland with include juniper. some large populations in Cumbria. Var. communis (ssp. communis) is mostly restricted to chalk soils Juniper is a ‘protective’ plant in folklore, warding in southern England, but does occur on more acidic off evil spirits and there is an association between and basic soils on maritime heaths, moorland, juniper and sacred sites. Juniper bushes are also rocky hillsides, and open birch, pine and oaks 4 Looking after Juniper – Ecology, Conservation and Folklore woods in northern England, Scotland and Ireland. pulses of regeneration. However, more work on the Var. communis (ssp. hemisperica) is restricted to metapopulation dynamics of juniper are required. two hectads dominated by maritime heath on the Lizard peninsula in Cornwall. Var. saxatilis has a There are 113 records of fungi and slime moulds northerly and smaller distribution occurring in that occur on juniper, and some are potentially coastal and mountain dwarf shrub communities. disastrous, such as the fungus Phytophthora austrocedrae which usually kills the host plant. The most sensitive habitat to climate change in This fungus is now known in many parts of the modelling is montane heaths, and the habitat UK, but particularly in Teesdale, where access to suitable for var. saxatilis may recede. Juniper some sites is restricted and other parts of Cumbria understory in pine and beech woodland is also and Scotland where the remote location and open thought to potentially be reduced by climate access of the sites makes restricting access more change, and predicted longer periods of drought on difficult to achieve. Infected junipers may be the free-draining calcareous southern England soils removed to reduce the spread of this fungus to may lead to juniper struggling to regenerate. The nearby individuals and populations. modelling of climate change scenarios is worse in Ireland, with the predicted extinction of juniper by There are over 50 insects and mites that have been 2080 based on the least worse scenarios, and sea recorded on juniper, with at least 42 specific to level rise could affect coastal juniper. juniper. Over approximately the last 50 years, nine new juniper feeding insects known elsewhere in In general, it appears that the distribution of Europe have been found in Britain. Some juniper juniper has declined over time, with fewer hectad feeding insects and mites are of Mediterranean (10 x 10 km squares) records in the current origin and are found on the southern England recording period 2000-2016 compared with juniper populations, whilst others are considered previous recording periods. Northern Ireland to come from the arctic-alpine region and are has suffered the greatest loss of juniper by 58%, found feeding on juniper in northern England followed by Ireland with an estimated 52% loss, and Scotland.