Juniperus chinensis

Chinese juniper is in the cypress or Cupressaceae family and is native to China, Mongolia, Japan, Korea and southeastern Russia. It is a coniferous, evergreen shrub.

Over 100 cultivars of Chinese juniper have been developed, for various characteristics (yellow foliage, permanently juvenile foliage, columnar crown shape, etc) for extensive use in gardens.

A hybrid between Juniperus chinensis and Juniperus Sabina, known as Juniperus × pfitzeriana, is also very common as a cultivated plant.

• Needles have 2 forms: juvenile needle-like, awl-shaped, spread around the stem, 5–10 mm long, and adult scale-like, pressed to the stem in 4 ranks, 1.5–3 mm long.
• Species is mostly monoecious; males are small (3 mm long), reddish brown terminal cones; females are blue-black berry-like cones up to 12 mm in diameter, with a waxy bloom.