Whispers travel on the wind through the ancient boughs of Sabina El Enebro. This isn’t just any tree. It is a living monument. It’s a testament to time itself in Boadilla del Monte.
Sabina El Enebro stands tall. Its scientific name is Juniperus thurifera. Locals also know it as sabina albar, enebro, trabina, tarabina, or trabino. The Juniperus genus originates from the French Alps. It extends through the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa.
In Spain, Sabina El Enebro thrives in the interior mountains. Guadalajara, Soria, Cuenca, Teruel, Segovia and Valencia count as its strongholds.
Juniperus comes from Latin. It’s simply the name for juniper. Thurifera means “incense-bearing”. Its wood smells wonderfully resinous. People have burned it as incense. Its strong scent is believed to repel insects and snakes.
Imagine February. Sabina El Enebro bursts into flower. Its berries called gayubas mature in two years.
Jose Antonio Labordeta wrote a song for this tree. It speaks of the Sabina’s enduring strength. It describes its silent witness to history. The song paints an image. It is of anarchists gathering beneath its sheltering branches.
Consider its size. Sabina El Enebro’s circumference measures 1.4 meters. It has a crown spanning 10 meters. This juniper towers to a height of 12 meters. Its life began around 1800. This makes it over two centuries old.
Enebros and sabinas share traits. They are easily spotted. Their shape is conic or ovoid. They stay green all year. These trees colonize lands. Their wood is resinous and fragrant.
Enebro leaves are needle-like. They are sharp. Sabina leaves are scale-like. They grow on rounded branches. Birds such as thrushes love the fleshy berries. Foxes eat them too. They spread the seeds.
Sabina El Enebro favors specific climes. It loves very cold winters. It adores hot summers. It needs lots of sun each year. It also demands good rainfall.
These trees grow slowly. Trunk diameter expands just millimeters each year. Reproduction is tricky. Yet, they live long. Some reach 2,000 years.
The wood is valued. It is hard to work with. Yet, it polishes well. Its scent and oils resist rot.
Local lore surrounds the tree. Some call larger trees “enebras”. This doesn’t relate to the tree’s flowers. Juniperus trees have separate male and female plants. Male flowers produce pollen.
Here, before the imposing Sabina El Enebro, we see nature’s art. It stands as a proud emblem of Boadilla del Monte. Its evergreen leaves rustle. They whisper tales of centuries gone by. Remember this giant. Carry its story forward. It will echo in the wind.