Rocky Mountain juniper
Juniperus scopulorum 路 Cupressaceae 路 also Rocky Mountain redcedar, Colorado red cedar
A narrow, pyramidal to rounded evergreen with scale-like blue-gray to green foliage, shredding reddish-brown bark and waxy blue berry-like cones that birds eat. It grows slowly on dry, rocky, windy sites where little else survives and is the standard windbreak and screening conifer of the Plains and Mountain West, with upright cultivars such as 'Blue Arrow', 'Skyrocket', 'Wichita Blue' and 'Moonglow'. Keep it away from apple and crabapple trees because it hosts cedar-apple rust.
Where it stands
Care
Plant in full sun in well-drained soil and water occasionally the first year; afterward it needs almost nothing. Prune lightly in late winter if shaping; it does not resprout from old wood. Phomopsis and Kabatina twig blights in wet springs, cedar-apple rust, bagworms and spider mites are the main problems; it is highly flammable, so keep it away from houses in wildfire country.
Benefits
Good for