California laurel

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California laurel
California laurel (Umbellularia californica)

California laurel ( Umbellularia californica )

Systematics
Class : Bedecktsamer (Magnoliopsida)
Magnoliids
Order : Laurels (Laurales)
Family : Laurel family (Lauraceae)
Genre : Umbellularia
Type : California laurel
Scientific name of the  genus
Umbellularia
( Nees ) Nutt.
Scientific name of the  species
Umbellularia californica
( Hook. & Arn. ) Nutt.
Leaves and inflorescences

The California laurel ( Umbellularia californica ), also called mountain laurel or California mountain laurel , is a deciduous tree species from the laurel family (Lauraceae) native to western North America . It is the only species of the monotypic genus Umbellularia . In the United States, this type of tree is known as Oregon Myrtle (wood) or California Bay Laurel , depending on where it is located.

description

inflorescence
Unripe fruits and stone pits

The California laurel grows as an evergreen shrub or tree and can grow to heights of up to 30 m, in exceptional cases up to 45 m, and the trunk diameter can reach 80 cm. The treetop is arched with dense, straight rising branches. The more or less thick bark is grayish and cracked to furrowed. The bark of the young twigs is dark green.

The simple, leathery and short-stalked leaves are alternate and about 6 to 10 cm long and 3 cm wide. The short petiole is up to 1 cm long. They are egg-shaped, lanceolate to obscure-lanceolate as well as glabrous, entire and rounded to acuminate. The glossy leaves have a light midrib. Grated leaves smell intensely, sweet, aromatic and fruity; the pungent scent can cause headaches if inhaled for a long time.

The flowering time falls in the winter to early spring. The greenish-yellow, small and short-stemmed flowers are five of us to tenth in small, stalked, axillary or terminal pseudo umbels initially by several sloping cover sheets are enveloped. The flowers are threefold and hermaphroditic with a simple flower envelope . All usually six bracts are designed the same. Of the three circles, each made up of three short stamens , a pair of glands is formed in the innermost circle at the base of each stamen. The stamens are longer than the anthers . These are four-chambered, the pollen sacs are arranged in two pairs on top of each other. The anthers of the two outer circles are turned inwards, those of the inner circle outwards. A fourth circle with minimal, sterile stamens ( staminodes ) is formed. The unilocular ovary is medium constantly with short pencil .

The olive-like and smooth stone fruits are about 2.5 cm tall and egg-shaped. They are initially green, and when ripe they are purple-red. The pulp surrounds a single hard, thin-skinned, rounded, brown, smooth stone core. The flower base is small and flat, the fruit is carried by a small, slightly lobed " fruit cup " on a thickened stem.

The number of chromosomes is 2n = 24.

distribution

The home of the California laurel is in the coastal area of ​​the US states of Oregon and California . The occurrences range from Douglas County in Oregon south along the Pacific coast to California's San Diego County . Inland, western mountain slopes of the Sierra Nevada are also populated. The California laurel occurs at altitudes from sea level up to 1,600 m.

In Central Europe , the tree is only suitable for outdoor cultivation in mild areas (Rhine) with protection in youth, as it is not very hardy. After frost damage, as in February 2012, the bushes sprout again strongly in summer. It is occasionally planted in gardens on the British Isles and in the Mediterranean region . Propagation from seeds is easy.

use

The plant contains unhealthy to poisonous components; no parts of the plant should be used as food. However, according to other sources, the plant is used in the kitchen. The leaves are used in cooking, similar to bay leaves; However, they taste a lot stronger than bay leaves and must therefore be dosed more sparingly.

The nuts are edible when roasted.

The wood is very hard, it is used to make wooden bowls, wooden spoons and other smaller items. For some time it has also been used to build acoustic guitars in the upper price segment. The back and sides (side walls) of the guitars can be made of the so-called Oregon Myrtlewood .

The tree is planted as an ornamental tree along the Pacific coast as far as Vancouver in Canada , as well as in climatically favored areas of Europe with mild winters.

Systematics

Some authors distinguish the following two varieties within the species:

  • Umbellularia californica var. Californica
  • Umbellularia californica var. Fresnensis Eastwood

literature

  • Alan Mitchell: The forest and park trees of Europe: An identification book for dendrologists and nature lovers . Paul Parey, Hamburg and Berlin 1975, ISBN 3-490-05918-2 (translated and edited by Gerd Krüssmann).
  • C. Frank Brockman: Trees of North America. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2001, ISBN 978-1-58238-092-6 , p. 118 (English).
  • JG Rohwer : Lauraceae. In: Klaus Kubitzki et al. (Ed.): The Families and genera of vascular plants. Volume 2: Flowering Plants - Dicotyledons - Magnoliid, Hamamelid and Caryophyllid Families , Springer, 1990, ISBN 978-3-540-55509-4 .
  • Howard McMinn: An Illustrated Manual of California Shrubs. Univ. of California Press, 1939, ISBN 0-520-00847-2 (Reprint), p. 119.
  • Thomas H. Everett: The New York Botanical Garden Illustrated Encyclopedia of Horticulture. Volume 10: Ste-Zy , Garland, 1982, ISBN 0-8240-7240-5 , p. 3446.

Web links

Commons : Californian Laurel ( Umbellularia californica )  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ John Wiseman: SAS Survival Guide . Collins Gem, ISBN 978-0-00-470167-7 .
  2. Archived copy ( memento of the original from June 10, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Example of a guitar from Oregon Myrtlewood. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.breedlove-guitars.de
  3. Another example from a German manufacturer at Lakewood Guitars.