Juniperus carinata
直叶香柏 zhiye xiangbai [Chinese].
Syn. J. pingii var. carinata Y. K. Yu & L. K. Fu.
This is one of the central Asian turbinate-cone junipers, a taxonomically complex group subdivided mainly on the basis of molecular studies that have almost all been performed by R. P. Adams and coworkers; the principal such studies were by Adams and Schwarzbach (2012, 2013); see the cladogram of Juniperus for a summary of relationships in the group. Many authors treat J. carinata as synonymous with, or a variety of J. pingii. Adams' (2000) stated rationale for species rank is: "The prostrate shrub, J. pingii var. carinata is very different from J. pingii in both its morphology, oils and DNA. I found this depressed shrub at timberline (4380 m) areas of w Yunnan, whereas J. pingii was found at a lower elevation (3560 m) in a coniferous forest. The oil of J. p. var. carinata is most similar to J. squamata... The DNA of J. p. var. carinata is very distinct and it forms a loose association with the coxii-pingii-recurva species. Because it is so distinct in its morphology, terpenes and RAPDs, J. pingii var. carinata merits recognition at the specific level."
Type: China, W Sichuan, Yajiang, elev. 4460 m, T.S. Ying 3140.
Dioecious shrubs, procumbent or erect to 4 m tall; rarely small trees. Bark tan to purple, exfoliating in thin strips. Twigs stout, not pendulous. Both decurrent (whip) and scale-like leaves, whip leaves often keeled, mucronate; scale leaves opposite, making the twigs quadrangular. Seed cones axillary, ovoid to globose, 7-9 mm diameter, 1-seeded, maturing in 2 years to a lustrous black. Pollen is shed in May to June (Adams 2014).
Occurs in W Yunnan and W Sichuan, in forests and thickets at 2700 to 4500 m elevation, usually near timberline (Fu et al. 1999, Adams 2014).
The species has not yet been recognized by the IUCN and thus has no formal conservation status. I can find no evidence that any other authority has assessed its vulnerability.
No data as of 2023.03.03.
The epithet presumably refers to the carinate (keeled) whip leaves.
Adams, R. P. 2000. Systematics of the one seeded Juniperus of the eastern hemisphere based on leaf essential oils and random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 28(6):529–543.
Adams, Robert P. 2014. Junipers of the World: The Genus Juniperus, fourth edition. Bloomington, IN: Trafford Publishing. 415 pp.
Adams, R. P., and A. E. Schwarzbach. 2012. Taxonomy of the turbinate shaped seed cone taxa of Juniperus, section Sabina: sequence analysis of nrDNA and four cpDNA regions. Phytologia 94(3):388-403.
Adams, R. P., and A. E. Schwarzbach. 2013. Taxonomy of the turbinate shaped seed cone taxa of Juniperus, section Sabina: Revisited. Phytologia 95:122–124.
Last Modified 2023-03-03
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