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Juniper
Common name: Juniper
Vernacular name: Dhupi
Botanical name: Juniperus communis L.
Family: Cupressaceae
Description
A dense erect shrub to 1.5m or at high altitude a prostrate shrub. Leaves needle-like sharp-pointed, 6-13mm long, with a broad bluish, white band above, in whorls of 3. Male cones ovoid, recalling leaf buds; female cone blue-black when ripe.
Fruiting period: April-May.
Parts used: Leaves and berries.
Distribution: The plants prefer drier areas and abundant in central and eastern Nepal at an altitude ranging between 1800-3600m, Himalaya (Kashmir to Bhutan), Afghanistan.
Propagation: The Plant is propagated through seeds.
Method of extraction of Juniper Oil: The essential oil is obtained by steam distillation of needles and young twings of Juniperus communis L.
| Specification of Juniper berry |
| 1. Organoleptic Properties |
| Appearance |
Mobile liquid. |
| Color |
Water white or pale yellow |
| Aroma |
Rich-balsamic, woody-sweet and pine needle like odor. |
| 2. Physico-chemical Properties |
| Specific gravity |
. 0.8563 to 0.8731 at 23°C. |
| Optical rotation |
[-] 22º to [-] 41.7º at 23º C |
| Refractive index |
1.481 to 1.899 at 23°C. |
| Acid number |
0.5 to 2.5 |
| Ester number |
3.06 to 20 |
| Ester number after acetylation |
40 to 65 |
| Solubility |
Some oils are soluble in 95% alcohol and some are not. |
3. Chemical constituent
ά- pinene, sabinene and ά- terpinene as major components and others are camphene, β- pinene, δ-3-carene, myrcene, limonene, β-phellandrene, γ-terpinene, p-cymene, terpinolene, trans-3-ethoxy-p-menth-1-ene, campholenic aldehyde, camphor, ά-copaene, bornyl acetate, terpinen-4-ol, caryophyllene, ά-terpineol. |
4. Uses:
- In perfumery and flavors.
- Aromatherapy: Rheumatism, anxiety, insomnia, stress
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