Conifer Species PDF

Species-level material Coniferous species Practical 4 Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. & Abies procera Rehder Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco Campus Taxus baccata L....

Species-level material Coniferous species Practical 4 Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. & Abies procera Rehder Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco Campus Taxus baccata L. walkabout Pinus sylvestris L. Pinus radiata D.Don Metasequoia glyptostroboides Hu and W.C.Cheng Sequoiadendron giganteum (Lindl.) J.Buchh. Cupressus macrocarpa (Hartw.) Bartel Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (A.Murray bis) Parl. × Cupressocyparis leylandii A. B. Jacks. & Dallim. Thuja plicata Donn ex D.Don Observation sheet Leaf Comments on its shape, positioning, colour, margins, presence and coverage of hairs, veination… Twigs/branches Colour, bark surface, buds (colour, shape, scales) Mature tree form Excurrent or decurrent, main stem bark colour, texture Other notes Personal observations Terminology Previously: Coniferous spp: Pome (Malus, Sorbus aucuparia) Acicular leaves Drupe (cherry) Aril Achene (Platanus x acerifolia) Awl Samara (Acer) Bipinnate Paired leaf-like stipules Fascicle Corymbs (Sambucus nigra) Glaucus Cyme flowers (Sorbus aria) Pulvini Panicles (A. hippocastanum) Tomentous Short leafy/woody involucre Picea –have pulvini Picea sitchensis Leaves stiff, sharp and needle-like, flattened in cross- section, dark glaucous blue-green above with two or three thin lines of stomata, and blue-white below with two dense bands of stomata Shoots pale brown, almost white and glabrous, with prominent pulvini Small pendulous cones, slender cylindrical Bark is thin and scaly, flaking off in large circular plates Picea abies Shoots are orange-brown and glabrous Leaves are needle-like with blunt tips, quadrangular in cross-section (i.e. not flattened), and dark green on all four sides -inconspicuous stomatal lines Seed cones are long (1>10 cm; longest of any spruce) with bluntly to sharply triangular-pointed scale tips Bark, often coppery, cracks into round plates Abies procera Needles, blue-green, whitish stomatal lines on both upper and lower surfaces, 2.5-3.5 cm long, hockey stick shape at base, spreading in two rows, flat, grooved above, rounded or slightly notched at apex, curved upward, ±flat on lower branches, but conspicuously 4- sided on mid and upper branches Leaf attachment to twig Cones 5-10 cm long, cylindrical, upright. The purple scales almost completely hidden by long projecting bract scales Pseudotsuga menziesii Leaves are flat, soft, linear, (similar to those of the firs) Occurring singly (not in fascicles) Completely encircle the branches Female cones pendulous, with persistent scales (unlike true firs). They have long three-pointed bracts protruding prominently over each scale Buds with a sharp tip, orange brown Sweet-smelling resinous scent Tsuga heterophylla Crown a very neat broad conic shape with strongly drooping lead shoot, has pendulous branchlet tips Leaves needle-like, short, are soft, flat with rounded tips. Needles along sides of twigs are longer than those on top. Crushed needles smell like grapefruit. Each needle has two white stomatal bands underneath Cones small, unstalked, pendulous, slenderly cylindrical, 14–30 mm Taxus baccata Leaves are flat, dark green, arranged spirally on the stem Leaf bases twisted to align the leaves in two flat rows either side of the stem, except on erect leading shoots where the spiral arrangement is more obvious Leaves are poisonous Seed cones are modified, each containing a single seed, partly surrounded by a fleshy scale which develops into a soft, bright red berry-like structure called an aril Bark is thin, scaly brown, comes off in small flakes Stem often fluted Pinus sylvestris Shoots are light brown, with spirally arranged scale- like pattern Acicular leaves are glaucous blue-green, stiff, twisted in fascicles of two with a persistent grey basal sheath Leaf persistence varies from two to four years in temperate climates (up to 10 in boreal regions) Bark is thick, scaly dark brown on lower trunk, and thin, flaky and orange on upper trunk & branches Cones take two years to mature  Monterey pine Pinus radiata Leaves bright green, in clusters of three, slender and long with a blunt tip, slightly twisted. All surfaces with fine stomatal lines, margins serrulate Cones are large (up to 20 cm), long, brown, ovoid and set asymmetrically on branches  Dawn redwood Metasequoia glyptostroboides Deciduous conifer Leaves are compound and opposite on deciduous branchlets - bright fresh green, turning reddish brown in autumn Resembles a feathery bi-pinnately compound leaf Bark is vertically fissured, sheds in ribbon-like strips Distinctive “armpit” structure under each branch Cones are globose to ovoid  Giant sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum Leaves evergreen, scale-like awl-shaped (sharp) and arranged spirally on shoots Seed cones have 30–50 spirally arranged scales, with several seeds on each scale –produce a lot of seed! Seed cones can mature in 18–20 months, though often remain green for up to 20 years. Stem bark is fibrous, furrowed and can be very thick at tree base  Monterey cypress Cupressus macrocarpa Scale-like leaves, pointed but appressed Lemony scent. No white markings Scale leaves on lower part of shoot stick out Shoots form dense sprays and are rounded (3D) not flattened Seed cones globose to oblong 3 cm –macrocarpa! Mature in 2 years Bark grey brown, soft, criss-cross ridges  Lawson cypress / Port Orford cedar Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Scale-like leaves with narrow white markings on underside (prominent gland, X-shape), free-pointed but not sharp Evergreen foliage in sprays i.e. flattened shoots Topmost leader droops (Leyland leans) Foliage has a scent of parsley (Leyland acrid) Reddish spongy bark Pea-sized cones globose (mature in 1 year); male cones dark red in spring  Leylandii or Leyland cypress × Cupressocyparis leylandii Scale-like leaves in flat sprays, but stick out at different angles i.e. 3D-plumes, sharp straight tips, no white markings underneath Topmost leader leans (Lawson droops) Pungent acrid resinous smell (Lawson parsley) Small round brown cones, but sterile hybrid Hybrid between Monterey (Cupressus macrocarpa) and Nootka (Cupressus leylandii) cypresses First in Leighton Hall (Leyland family name) in Powys, Wales c. 1870/80, also Rostrevor, Co. Down. Leylandii - large evergreen tree, widely planted ornamental in parks and gardens. Has exceptionally rapid growth and dense foliage - popular hedging species. But can quickly grow to excessive heights, blocking out light in gardens. Chamaecyparis × Cupressocyparis lawsoniana leylandii  Western red cedar Thuja plicata Scale-like leaves in opposite pairs (4 per node), sharp but incurving Whiteish stomatal streaks underneath (butterfly pattern) Foliage forms flat sprays, strongly aromatic (pineapple?) Seed cones slender, flask-shaped, mature in 1 year Male cones red at first, open in spring Fibrous bark, soft, longitudinally fissured  Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. & Picea abies (L.) H. Karst. Abies procera Rehder Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg. Single Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirbel) Franco Taxus baccata L. Pinus sylvestris L. Bundles Pinus radiata D.Don Cedrus deodara (Roxb.) G.Don Clusters Larix kaempferi (Lamb.) Carr. Metasequoia glyptostroboides Hu and W.C.Cheng Sequoiadendron giganteum (Lindl.) J.Buchh. Cupressus macrocarpa (Hartw.) Bartel Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (A.Murray bis) Parl. Scales × Cupressocyparis leylandii A. B. Jacks. & Dallim. Thuja plicata Donn ex D.Don Campus Walkabout ❖Tree tour Open-grown vs. stand, Tree form open, excurrent/decurrant Branching pattern Crown structure Trunk fluted, buttresses at base Bark appearance fissured vs smooth, flakes, Crown light conditions scales… Leaf descriptions Scales, needles, whorled Ash dieback Simple, compound Campus Walkabout ✓Checklist x 10 ❑Achene ❑Aril ❑Auricles ❑Awl-shaped scale leaves ❑Interrupted & entire pith ❑Peduncle ❑Pome ❑Samara ❑Stipules ❑Woody involucre Campus Walkabout ✓Checklist x 10 London plane ❑Achene Yew Quercus robur ❑Aril Sequoiadendron giganteum ❑Auricles Juglans regia ❑Awl-shaped scale leaves Sambucus nigra ❑Interrupted & entire pith Quercus petraea ❑Peduncle Crataegus monogyna ❑Pome Acer, Fraxinus ❑Samara Sorbus aucuparia, ❑Stipules Prunis ❑Woody involucre Fagus sylvatica