Juniper is an evergreen popular in landscaping… but you may know the plant more for giving flavoring to gin. The juniper shrub’s branches, leaves, and berries have long been used in cooking and medicine, too.
Juniper has a very strong smell, which led early medical practitioners to believe it could drive away evil spirits and disease. Native Americans believed that juniper was useful for cleansing and healing. It was used to prevent infection, relieve arthritis, and cure illnesses. Bundles of juniper branches with leaves were heated and tied to a sore limb to relieve pain.
These days, juniper still has a place in natural healing.
- Relieve aches and pains from arthritis, bruises, wounds, and sore muscles with a juniper soak or rub. You can add a handful of leaves to warm bath water and soak or make a poultice of mashed berries.
- Juniper is a diuretic that works mainly through an irritating action — a volatile oil in the berries, leaves, and wood can irritate kidneys. Many herbalists will point you towards a gentler diuretic instead of juniper.
- Need an appetite stimulant? The berries can help. You may find juniper berries added to sauerkraut, salads, pates, and more. Crushed juniper berries are often used with wild game dishes — only three or four are enough, as juniper has a strong scent and flavor.
Because juniper can be a kidney irritant, it is not recommended for use by pregnant women and people with kidney disease. Repeated use can increase the risk of kidney problems.
Want to harvest your own juniper for cooking or medicinal use? You can pick the leaves and branches of the juniper shrub at any time of year. Watch out — the leaves are prickly! The berries aren’t ready for picking until fall. Green berries are immature; blue berries are mature and ready to be picked. The volatile oils are most concentrated in freshly picked berries, but the amount of oil decreases as the berries dry. Dry your juniper berries in the sun — the blue will slowly fade to an almost black color.