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The "Miyama-byakushin" (Juniperus chinensis var. sargentii) belongs to Cupressaceae (the Cypress family). It is a small evergreen tree that is distributed in various parts of Japan, as well as in the Kuril Islands, Sakhalin, Taiwan and the Korean Peninsula. It is a variety of the Chinese juniper. It grows on high mountains and rocky coastal areas, and can reach a height of around 50 cm. The trunk creeps along the ground, and the branches grow at an angle. When young, the leaves are needle-like, but when the tree is fully grown, they become scale-like. The white stomatal lines on the underside of the leaves are X-shaped or elliptic. It is dioecious, and inconspicuous yellowish-brown flowers bloom in April. The fruit is a cone 6-8 mm in diameter, which ripens black in fall. In the world of bonsai, it is called "槙柏" (shimpaku). In Taiwanese, it is called "清水圓柏".
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