" Cedrus libani 'glauca' , autochthone stand, Ciglikara Ormani in the vicinity of Elmali, Turkey, at 1900 m elevation" (3).
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Cedrus libani
A. Rich.
Common NamesLebanese cedar, cedar of Lebanon (3).Taxonomic notesSyn: C. libanotica Link; C. libanitica (Trew) Pilger; C. libanensis Juss. ex Mirb.; C. cedrus Huth.; C. patula K.Koch (3). Author cited as Loud. in (3)."A geographical race ssp. stenocoma (Schwarz) Davis ( = C. libanitica ssp. stenocarpa Schwarz), found in S.W. Anatolia, differs from the typical Lebanon cedar in having a pyramidal or columnar habit" (3). Description"A tree 20-40 m high and up to 3 m in diameter. CROWN in juvenile stage pyramidal, finally a wide umbrella shape, dense. BARK dark gray, fissured. BRANCHES very thick, long, on young trees ascending, later horizontal. SHOOTS glabrous or slightly pubescent. NEEDLES on short shoots, 30-40 in tufts, usually dark green, stiff, 1.5-3.5 cm long, about 1 mm wide, acuminate, 4-sided. FLOWERS appear from June to September. CONES erect, with the apex flat or slightly concave, 8-10 cm long, 4-6 cm wide, brown, resinous; ripening from August to October; seeds are shed until spring; seed scales up to 5 cm wide, lightly tomentose on the exterior, closely appressed. SEED 15-18 mm, wing 25 mm long" (3).RangeOriginally native to Asia Minor (2). Currently found in "the Jebel Alaonite mountains in Syria, and Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon in Lebanon, where it is now very rare (according to Paule (1975) there are about 2000-3000 ha of forests of this species), but it is still plentiful in the Taurus and Cilician Taurus in Turkey. It grows between 1300 and 2100 m elevation. Quite hardy, this light-demanding and calciphile species grows rather slowly" (3).Big TreeA specimen 335 cm dbh grows on Mt. Lebanon in Lebanon (4). A tree in Villa Mirabello, Lombardia, Varese, VA, Italy has a 360 cm dbh and is 28 m tall (5). A tree in Leaton Knolls, Shropshire, Great Britain is 113 cm dbh and 43 m tall (6).OldestMore than 1000 years (4).DendrochronologyEthnobotany"Timber is of good quality and has been used in shipmaking, building and resin production since ancient times" (3). It is mentioned often in the Old Testament of the Bible. For example, the First Temple of Solomon was built of it (see 1 Kings 5:6) (2). In modern times, Cedar of Lebanon is widely cultivated as an ornamental species.ObservationsThe Horsh Ehden nature preserve in Lebanon looks to be a very worthwhile place to visit and see this species in a pristine setting; see (7) for details.RemarksCitations(1) Silba 1986 .(2) "Cedar," Encarta 97. (3) Vidakovic 1991 . (4) Carder 1995 . (5) CORPO FORESTALE DELLA STATO , a listing of big trees in Italy. (6) Mitchell et al. 1990 . (7) Fareed Abou-Haidar. 15-Jan-1999. LebEnv #65: HIKING IN HORSH EHDEN PRESERVE. URL=http://almashriq.hiof.no/lebanon/300/360/363/363.7/fareed/lebenv65.html, accessed 25-Jan-2000. See also: Little 1980 . |
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