Himalayan cypress
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Himalayan cypress ( Cupressus torulosa ) |
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| Cupressus torulosa | ||||||||||||
| D. Don |
The Himalayan cypress ( Cupressus torulosa ) is a plant from the family of the cypress family (Cupressaceae). It is native to the Himalayas and the mountains of Vietnam .
description
The Himalayan cypress grows as an evergreen tree that can reach heights of growth of 15 to 45 meters and diameters of 40 to 350 centimeters at chest height . The thick bark is gray-brown to brown in color and flakes off in elongated strips. The crown is oval to broadly conical in shape. It consists of thin, hanging branches. The slender, pencil-shaped branches are 1 to 1.4 millimeters thick and hang or protrude irregularly from the branches. They are densely packed or loosely on the branches. The pale brown heartwood is surrounded by a pale yellow sapwood .
The scale-like, flat leaves are 1 to 1.8 millimeters long and are dark green in color. They stand tightly against the branches. Their tips are blunt.
The flowering period extends from February to March and the seeds ripen from May to June. The male cones are approximately spherical in shape with a diameter of 3 to 6 millimeters. They contain 14 to 18 microsporophylls . The cones are spherical to broadly egg-shaped with a length of 1.2 to 2 centimeters and a thickness of 1 to 1.8 centimeters. They stand on very short stems. Initially they are colored green or purple. As they ripen, they turn dark brown to gray-brown. Each cone consists of six to twelve cone scales, each of which carries six to eight seeds. The flat, red-brown seeds are 3 to 5 millimeters long and elongated in shape.
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 22.
Distribution and location
The natural range of the Himalayan cypress includes the north of India, Kashmir , Nepal , the south and east of Xizang and Vietnam . In Vietnam it occurs in a small area in central Vietnam and in the North Vietnamese provinces of Lạng Sơn and Tuyên Quang . The species is also planted in Kon Tum and Lâm Đồng . There may also be deposits in Bhutan and the Indian state of Sikkim .
The Himalayan cypress thrives at altitudes of 800 to 2800 meters. The species is found mainly in mountains, where it grows in tropical and subtropical forests on calcareous soils. In Sichuan it also grows in arid areas . Sometimes pure stands are formed, but mostly it forms the dominant tree species in mixed stands with Markhamia stipulata and with Burretiodendron hsienmu .
use
In their homeland, the Himalayan cypress is an important supplier of wood. The hard, finely grained wood is durable and resistant to insect attack. It is mainly used for carpentry work as well as construction wood. It is also used in rail construction. Mainly from the root wood an oil can be extracted that can be used to treat inflamed wounds due to its antiseptic effect. The species is also planted as an ornamental wood.
Systematics
It was first described as Cupressus torulosa in 1824 by David Don in A Description of the Genus Pinus 1 (2), p. 18 . Synonyms for Cupressus torulosa D. Don are Cupressus lusitanica subsp. torulosa (D. Don ex Lamb.) Silba & DZ Fu , Cupressus tongmaiensis Silba and Cupressus tonkinensis Silba . According to WCSP, Cupressus tonkinensis is an independent species from north-eastern Vietnam and Cupressus tongmaiensis is a subspecies of Cupressus austrotibetica .
The Tibetan cypress ( Cupressus gigantea ) is considered by some authors to be a variety of the Himalayan cypress.
Hazard and protection
The Himalayan cypress is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List . However, it is considered endangered in Vietnam.
swell
- Christopher J. Earle: Cupressus torulosa. In: The Gymnosperm Database. www.conifers.org, May 20, 2011, accessed December 29, 2011 .
- Liguo Fu, Yong-fu Yu, Robert P. Adams & Aljos Farjon: Cupressaceae . Cupressus. In: Wu Zhengyi, Peter H. Raven & Hong Deyuan (eds.): Flora of China . Cycadaceae through Fagaceae. Volume 4. Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis 1999, ISBN 0-915279-70-3 , Cupressus torulosa , pp. 66 (English, Cupressus torulosa - online - this printed work is online with the same text).
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g Christopher J. Earle: Cupressus torulosa. In: The Gymnosperm Database. www.conifers.org, May 20, 2011, accessed December 29, 2011 .
- ↑ a b c d e f Liguo Fu, Yong-fu Yu, Robert P. Adams & Aljos Farjon: Cupressaceae . Cupressus. In: Wu Zhengyi, Peter H. Raven & Hong Deyuan (eds.): Flora of China . Cycadaceae through Fagaceae. Volume 4. Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis 1999, ISBN 0-915279-70-3 , Cupressus torulosa , pp. 66 (English, Cupressus torulosa - online - this printed work is online with the same text).
- ↑ Cupressus torulosa at Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, accessed December 29, 2011.
- ^ Rafaël Govaerts (ed.): Cupressus. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Retrieved March 23, 2019.
- ^ Liguo Fu, Yong-fu Yu, Robert P. Adams & Aljos Farjon: Cupressaceae . Cupressus. In: Wu Zhengyi, Peter H. Raven & Hong Deyuan (eds.): Flora of China . Cycadaceae through Fagaceae. Volume 4. Science Press and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing and St. Louis 1999, ISBN 0-915279-70-3 , Cupressus gigantea , pp. 67 (English, Cupressus gigantea - online - this printed work is online with the same text).
Web links
- Cupressus torulosa inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: Zhang, D & Christian, T., 2010. Retrieved November 30, 2013.