This shrub is ranked as critically imperiled in North Carolina and its status is significantly rare/disjunct. To our knowledge, there are currently no records of Common Juniper in Polk County, but it has been identified in neighboring and nearby counties.

If you think that you have this species growing on your property, or know where it might be located, please contact PAC at 828-859-5060, or e-mail comments, questions or photos to landprotection@pacolet.org.

Please rest assured that if this plant is located on your property, PAC, David Campbell, nor anyone else is interested in “telling you what you can/cannot do on your property.”  That is the choice of the landowner; however, should a landowner be interested in managing the site to encourage the persistence of the species and/or preserving the land containing the species, PAC would be happy to assist.

The purpose of this project is to gain a better understanding of the flora in Polk County, document the species present in the county and to make sure that the flora of Polk County is well represented in state records and herbaria.  The only extensive study done in Polk County was conducted in the 1950s and 1960s.

– article submitted by Pam Torlina