Juniperus californica (California Juniper) is a species in the Cupressaceae (Cypress) family native to southwestern North America; as the name implies, it is mainly found in California, but also extends through most of Baja California, and a short distance into southern Nevada and western Arizona. It grows at moderate altitudes of 750-1,600 meter. It is a shrub or small tree reaching 3-8 meter (rarely to 10 meter) tall. It is much branched from the base. The shoots are fairly thick compared to most junipers, 1.5-2 millimeter diameter. The leaves are arranged in opposite decussate pairs or whorls of three; the adult leaves are scale-like, 1-2 millimeter long (to 5 millimeter on lead shoots) and 1-1.5 millimeter broad. The juvenile leaves (on young seedlings only) are needle-like, 5-10 millimeter long. The cones are berry-like, 7-13 millimeter in diameter, blue-brown with a whitish waxy bloom, and contain a single seed (rarely two or three); they are mature in about 8-9 months. The male cones are 2-4 millimeter long, and shed their pollen in early spring. It is largely dioecious producing cones of only one sex, but around 2% of plants are monoecious, with both sexes on the same plant. The bark is typically thin and appears to be "shredded." In the garden this plant is tolerant of many soils and requires minimal water once established. It becomes wider than tall so give it plenty of room.