How Austin's most hated tree benefits humans and the environment

While responsible for countless days of runny noses, itchy eyes, and other miserable allergy symptoms, the trees do have their redeeming qualities.

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- For as long as people have lived in Central Texas, Ashe Juniper has been making them miserable.

Though not technically cedar, the Ashe Juniper trees have been referred to as cedar since the first settlers arrived in Texas, and the name stuck.

While responsible for countless days of runny noses, itchy eyes, and other miserable allergy symptoms, the trees do have their redeeming qualities.

If you can't learn to love it, Texas A&M Forest Service Woodland Ecologist Karl Floke explained the reasons to at least appreciate cedar a little more.

Tom Miller: There's a food benefit to these cedar trees. How do they help out animals?

Karl Flocke: Absolutely. Animals, especially insects and other arthropods will eat the foliage itself. Then birds and mammals will eat those insects. Then the berries on the the female trees this time of year get consumed by a number of different birds. Then the foliage itself, even things like goats sometimes will eat that foliage, if that's available. Occasionally they can be used as things like seasoning and foods when they're dry. Juniper berries are used around the world for that purpose.

Tom: Beyond the food, how do they help with the environment and where would we be without them?

Karl: They grow in a lot of places where other trees can't and help to stabilize the soil, keep it from eroding during rain events. They also help to kind of like sponges. Whenever it does rain, they help the water stay in place, soak into the soil, and eventually into our aquifer. Another really important thing that these Ash Junipers do here in our hill country environment is they provide habitat for an endangered species, the Golden-cheeked Warbler. They utilize the bark of mature cedar trees to build their nest. It's the only material that they really use for their nest. And this is the only place in the world where they actually breed and nest so it's really important to have some of these mature cedar trees to act as habitat for the endangered Golden-cheeked Warbler.

Tom: Some people will try to make home remedies or use cedar in some medicinal way. Is that legitimate?

Karl: We know that these ash juniper trees have been utilized for medicinal purposes for a long time, originally by native peoples of course, but nowadays as well. There are a lot of purported benefits anti-inflammatory antifungal, some folks even think that it will help to reduce the effects of cedar allergies. Like most homeopathic medicines, the research behind that isn't super strong one way or another.

Tom: There is a myth out there that these trees are not native to Texas. What's the truth?

Karl: When we talk about these trees, there's a kind of a problem with terminology. We refer to these as cedar trees, but they're not actually cedar trees. They're what's called an Ash Juniper. True cedars live in the Mediterranean region, not here in Central Texas. This tree, the Ashe Juniper tree is absolutely native to Central Texas, it's been here longer than humans have. That's an important thing to remember too, because a lot of folks think that somehow we brought them in. One thing about these trees is they probably are increasing in abundance because of humans. In the last 100 to 200 years, we've really changed the natural environmental regimes, things like fires, and that's caused an increase of all woody vegetation.