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Juniper Cossack. Legends, myths, symbolism, description, cultivation, methods of application

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Content

1. Photos, basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism
2. Genus, family, origin, range, chemical composition, economic importance
3. Botanical description, reference data, useful information, illustrations
4. Recipes for use in traditional medicine and cosmetology
5. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing

Juniper Cossack, Juniperus sabina. Photos of the plant, basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism

Basic scientific information, legends, myths, symbolism

Sort by: Juniper (Juniperus)

Family: Cypress (Cupressaceae)

Origin: Eurasia and North America.

Area: Juniper Cossack is common in Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Siberia and Kazakhstan. It also grows in North America.

Chemical composition: Cossack juniper fruits contain essential oil, phytoncides, resins, tannins, flavonoids and carotenoids.

Economic value: From the fruits of the Cossack juniper, an essential oil is obtained, which is used in the perfume and cosmetic industries, as well as in medicine and in the production of food additives. Wood can be used as fuel. Also, Cossack juniper is popular in landscape design as an ornamental plant. However, it should be remembered that the fruits and leaves can be poisonous if consumed in large quantities.

Legends and myths: In some cultures, the mighty juniper bushes served as the personification of strength and protection. In heraldry, the juniper symbolizes protection from evil and danger, as well as victory over the enemy. In ancient Roman mythology, juniper was associated with the goddess Juno and the god Mercury.

Juniper Cossack, Juniperus sabina. Description, illustrations of the plant

Juniper Cossack, Juniperus sabina. Botanical description of the plant, area, methods of application, cultivation

The Latin name Juniperus, according to one version, comes from joini-parus - giving branches suitable for weaving, according to other sources - from the Celtic word Jeneprus - prickly, because of the prickly leaves.

Creeping coniferous shrub 1-1,5 m high. Due to the active rooting of shoots lying on the ground, it quickly grows in width and forms dense, often impenetrable thickets. Less common are small trees up to 4 m tall with curved trunks. The bark is red-brown, exfoliating. Shoots, needles and fruits contain essential oil, are poisonous, have a sharp, specific smell, especially when rubbed.

The needles of the Cossack juniper are of two types in young plants and on shaded branches it is needle-shaped, erect, pointed, 4-6 mm long, bluish-green above, soft, with a clearly defined median vein. In adult plants, the needles are scaly, tiled, i.e. the leaves overlap each other and are pressed against the branch. The needles remain on the branches for three years.

The plant is dioecious, i.e. male and female reproductive organs are located on different individuals. Propagated by seeds and vegetatively, i.e. rooting of branches. In the natural environment, these junipers live for more than a hundred years, in culture their life expectancy is about 30 years or longer, depending on the conditions of detention.

The fruits (cones) of the Cossack juniper are drooping, bumpy, black-blue with green flesh, small (5-7 mm), round-oval, mostly with 2 seeds, much longer than the leaves (in common juniper, the fruits are 2-3 times shorter needles), with a sharp unpleasant odor. Seeds ripen in autumn and spring of the next year.

The natural range of the Cossack juniper is southern and central Europe, Asia Minor (Turkey), the Caucasus, the Urals, Siberia, Primorye, Southeast Asia.

Forests or groves in the steppe zone, on rocky mountain slopes and sand dunes. In the mountains, it grows from the lower to the upper belt, i.e. at altitudes of 1000-2300 m above sea level, where it often forms thickets. It is drought-resistant, photophilous, undemanding to the soil, resistant to smoke and gases, has soil-protective properties.

Cossack juniper contains poisonous essential oil - sabinol, bitter glucoside - pinopicrin, gallic acid, tannins, resin, wax, vitamin C.

The Cossack juniper, unlike the common juniper related to it, is a poisonous plant; it is not eaten.

The plant has diuretic, choleretic, diaphoretic, antihelminthic, anticonvulsant and antiseptic properties. However, due to its pronounced toxic, poisonous properties, the scope of therapeutic use of preparations from Cossack juniper is limited. Mostly, these are ointments and tinctures, which are made from needles, shoots and bark of these trees and are used as an external remedy. For example, with baldness, scabies, lichen, scab, purulent ulcers and warts. For homeopathic purposes, the essence of young branches is used to treat urolithiasis, painful menstruation, menstrual disorders and gout.

The internal use of Cossack juniper, as a poisonous plant, as well as preparations from it, requires great care.

Due to its decorative qualities, as well as increased drought resistance and resistance to air pollution, Cossack juniper is widely used in landscape gardening, as well as in the preparation of landscape compositions. It is also widely used for decorating slopes, rocky hills, lawns and forest edges, both in single and group plantings. It is used as a ground cover and tapeworm against the background of taller plants, as well as in rock gardens.

In landscape design, Cossack juniper fits perfectly into the deliberately rough Scandinavian style, which implies open rocky spaces, sharp lines and laconic restraint. Varieties with yellow-golden or yellow-green needles are ideally combined with lichens, mosses, heathers and dwarf shrubs of other species, set the tone and place accents.

The wood of the Cossack juniper is similar in composition to the wood of the common juniper and has the same properties - it is strong, but rather soft. It is perfectly processed by cutting tools, the cuts are clean and glossy. There are no resin passages in the wood of juniper plants, so it is easy to polish and cover with dyes of various composition.

Joiners and cabinetmakers use this material for both three-dimensional and flat-relief carving. Products made from Cossack juniper wood warp and crack very rarely. Knot end cuts are used for turning, and the roots and branches are used for the manufacture of applied products (hooks for catching fish, brackets, cooperage barrels, tubs for pickling, mugs for beer and kvass, lids for milk).

Juniper branches have a sharp, specific smell that repels insects, so in rural areas it is customary to put the shoots of this plant in linen closets, using it as a moth repellant.

An aqueous infusion of Cossack juniper in very small doses is used for chronic aching joints, intermittent fever, paralysis, hysterical seizures and against worms. The powder of crushed leaves is used externally for the healing of purulent ulcers. Fresh crushed leaves, mixed and pounded with lard or butter, are used for scab, scabies, various lichens and for removing warts.

Juniper Cossack has been known in cultivation since 1584, and is currently widely used and cultivated (about 20 varieties). When designing landscape compositions in the cold English style, large varieties of Cossack juniper with a regular crown shape with needles of a more restrained color (greenish-gray, bluish-silver) are used. In English gardens, junipers do not place accents, do not attract attention to themselves, but ennoble and complement the landscape.

Cossack juniper is also suitable for composing compositions in the Japanese style. In this case, varieties of a strict form are used, emphasizing the bright colors and specific forms of the oriental garden. Landscape designers, when composing compositions in the Japanese style, recommend planting junipers next to heathers of red, yellow, orange, blue or white, near rocky islands.

Cossack juniper can be grown not only in the garden, but also at home, indoors. In this case, the plants are formed into a standard dwarf tree or bush. Possessing strong antiseptic properties, Cossack juniper at home will not only please the eye, but also purify the air for several meters around.

All junipers are photophilous, in most cases they prefer light soil. If you want to plant this plant at home, you need to take a small container, on the bottom of which lay drainage from broken bricks and sand, you can add a few pieces of coal. As a basis for planting, you need to use a substrate consisting of peat, sand, soddy soil and lime. Like the virgin juniper, the Cossack juniper is quite drought-resistant, so these plants do not require additional watering - it is enough to water the ground when planting, and then not earlier than after 2-3 weeks. In extreme heat, the frequency of watering can be increased. You also need to remember to spray regularly to prevent the needles from drying out.

Juniper is still not an indoor plant, so in the warm season it is better to take it out to the garden or to the balcony. In winter, a container with Cossack juniper is best kept in a bright, cool place at a temperature of +7 to +9 degrees. In the absence of a winter garden, plants should be placed on the windowsill as close as possible to the window glass.

Dwarf shrubs are transplanted in November or March, pruning is done in spring (March-April) or autumn (October-November). From May to July, the tips of the shoots need to be pinched so that the plant does not grow up and out. When forming a Cossack juniper into a bonsai, the branches are wrapped with wire, giving the tree the necessary shape.

Cossack juniper propagates by seeds and vegetatively (by cuttings and layering). The cuttings are rooted in April, when the plant is in a state of relative dormancy, and in August, when the lower part of the growth of the current year is woody. The cuttings are taken with a heel, separating a branched growth from 10 to 30 cm in size from the mother specimen. The heels must be processed with a sharp knife, leaving 0,5 - 1 cm on each handle, depending on its size. rooting will not occur. Then all branches located at the bottom of the cutting are removed. For best results, root stimulants are used.

The finished material is planted in a substrate consisting of black soil, river sand and coniferous sawdust (1:1:1). First, a drainage layer up to 15 cm high must be laid on the bottom. The cuttings are buried 5-7 cm into the soil and watered abundantly. Rooting lasts up to 2,5 months, during which the plants need to be watered daily and sprayed 3-4 times a day. To protect from the sun, shading is used, which is removed in cloudy weather. In autumn or early winter, with the onset of persistent frosts, the soil around the plants is mulched with a 5 cm layer of sawdust. This is necessary only for young plants, with age their winter hardiness increases, and the need for mulching disappears.

During the growing season, Cossack juniper can be propagated by layering. To do this, the branches are pinned to the ground, spud and periodically watered. They soon take root.

The seed method consists in collecting cones that have formed on female specimens and sowing them in loose fertile soil. Seedlings appear 1-3 years after sowing. In order to increase the germination of seeds, after harvesting, they are separated from the shells, placed for half an hour in sulfuric acid and washed.

When transplanting Cossack juniper, it is important not to damage the tap root system. It is recommended to dig the seedlings deeper and try to keep the earth ball. If everything is done carefully, the plant tolerates transplantation painlessly.

Cossack juniper care is not difficult and consists in watering in hot weather, top dressing during the growing season (this is especially true for young specimens) and crown formation as needed. The plant responds positively to crown sprinkling. This procedure increases the humidity of the air and helps to clean the needles from dust.

In ancient Rome and Greece, the juniper plant was considered a sure remedy against snakes. The famous myth of the Argonauts tells how Medea and Jason, with the help of juniper, put to sleep the monstrous serpent guarding the Golden Fleece. In the Middle Ages, it was considered an almost universal remedy. The famous Italian physician of the XNUMXth century, Pietro Andree Mattioli (Mattiolus), emphasized the effectiveness of juniper as a diuretic and uterine remedy.

Juniper Cossack, Juniperus sabina. Recipes for use in traditional medicine and cosmetology

Ethnoscience:

• Rheumatism: to prepare a tincture of Cossack juniper per 100 grams of dry plant material, 1 liter of boiling water is needed. infuse the mixture for 2-3 days in a dark place and take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before meals.
• Diseases of the genitourinary system: Cossack juniper tincture helps eliminate bladder inflammation, kidney and bladder stones. To prepare a tincture for 1 liter of boiling water, you need to take 50 grams of dry plant material. infuse the mixture for 2-3 days and take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before meals.
• Diseases of the respiratory system: Cossack juniper tincture helps with colds, coughs and bronchitis. To prepare a tincture for 1 liter of boiling water, you need to take 100 grams of dry plant material. infuse the mixture for 2-3 days and take 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before meals.

Cosmetology:

Juniper Cossack is a poisonous plant and is not recommended for use in cosmetology. This plant contains toxic substances such as sabinol and sabinene, which can cause skin irritation, allergic reactions, and other undesirable effects.

Attention! Before use, consult with a specialist!

Juniper Cossack, Juniperus sabina. Tips for growing, harvesting and storing

Cossack juniper (Juniperus sabina) is a short, evergreen shrub plant with erect, dense branches and small needles. It is commonly grown as an ornamental plant in gardens and flowerbeds, and is also used as a hedge.

Tips for growing, harvesting and storing Cossack juniper:

Cultivation:

• Juniper Cossack prefers a sunny or semi-shady place. It can survive in a variety of soil types, but prefers well-drained, sandy soils with a neutral to alkaline pH.
• The plant does not grow well in clayey or overly acidic soils.
• Once you have chosen a suitable planting site, prepare the soil so that it is loose and well-drained.
• Plant the plants in holes that are about twice as deep and wide as the plant's root system.
• When planting, you can add compost or other organic material to the hole to improve soil nutrition.
• Set the plants to the depth they were grown in the container, or slightly below soil level if you are planting bare roots.
• The distance between plants should be between 0,5 and 1 meter, depending on how you plan to use the plants.
• Cossack juniper does not require much care, but there are a few things you can do to help it thrive.
• In the first years after planting, make sure that the plants get enough water, especially in hot weather. They don't like overdrying, but they also don't like submerged roots. As the plants grow older, they will be more drought tolerant.
• If necessary, prune plants in spring or summer to maintain the desired shape and size. Do not cut more than a third of the plant at a time, so as not to damage it.
• You can fertilize the plants in spring or early summer.
• Use a low nitrogen fertilizer to avoid overgrowth. Fertilizers containing phosphorus and potassium can be used to promote healthy plant growth and development.

Workpiece:

• You can collect and use the fruits of the Cossack juniper to make a spicy seasoning or essential oil.
• Harvest the fruits when they are fully ripe but not falling apart on your fingers.
• Air dry the fruits for a few days, then crush them to get the desired consistency.

Storage:

• Dried fruits of Cossack juniper can be stored in hermetically sealed containers in a cool and dry place. They will retain their freshness and aroma for several months.
• If you store Cossack juniper oil, then place it in an airtight bottle and store it in a cool place, protected from light.
• The oil will retain its qualities for a year or more.

Some types of juniper can be toxic, so be careful when handling them. If you have any doubts, consult your doctor.

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