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Extremely hardy and adaptable to poor soils. Full sun required.
GROW SOMETHING WONDERFUL
Eastern Red Cedar
Juniperus virginiana
Your guide to planting, growing, and getting to know this plant.
THE PLANT NOTEBOOK
Eastern Red Cedar care, from seed onward.
- Botanical name
- Juniperus virginiana
- Common names
- Virginian Juniper
- Family
- Cupressaceae
- Genus
- Juniperus
- Species
- J. virginiana
Growing with your kit
Seeds In A Cup® clear planter lets kids see the tough, fibrous root system of this 'pioneer' tree.
Propagation
By seed (requires long stratification) or cuttings.
Seasonal growth & harvest
A pioneer species; often the first tree to reclaim abandoned fields.
Growing conditions
Dry bluffs, rocky hillsides, and abandoned pastures.
Weather & tolerances
Highly drought, heat, and cold tolerant. Salt tolerant.
Pests & plant health
Cedar-Apple Rust (alternate host for fungal disease).
Plant safety
Safe for humans; toxic to horses in large quantities.
Botanical features
A hardy evergreen conifer with scale-like foliage and aromatic blue berry-like cones.
Varieties
‘Taylor’, ‘Grey Owl’.
Garden & everyday uses
Wood is rot-resistant and moth-repellent (cedar chests). Berries used for flavoring gin
Native range & distribution
Eastern and Central United States.
Conservation
Very secure; invasive in some prairie ecosystems.
Name origins
Not a true cedar (Cedrus), but a juniper named for its aromatic red wood.
History
Early settlers found massive groves on Roanoke Island in 1584.