User:Iabarno/Juniperus occidentalis

Seasonal Development
Springtime is when the majority of western juniper seed germinate. In Oregon, where most of the western juniper trees reside, seeds germinate in April and foliage of the plant emerges in June. For seeds to be dispersed, water runoff, gravity, and animals dispersing seeds, all contribute to the distribution of the seeds.

Fire Ecology
In the past two decades, sagebrush steppe ecosystems have witnessed an expansion of Juniper throughout the Western United States. This alteration of vegetation change can be associated with the decreased fire frequency, overgrazing of livestock, and an alteration of climate that transformed into a more wet and mild climate.

Fire scar data was collected and dated to display the expansion of western juniper. It started between 1875 and 1885, with a pinnacle rate of development between approximately 1905 and 1924.

Since the 1990s use of prescribed fires to control expansion of western juniper has increased. The results of increased prescription fires show a positive correlation of plant communities post fire.