Dragon Spruce
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| Picea asperata Mast. |
The Dragon Spruce (Picea asperata; Chinese: Yun Shan) is a spruce native to western China, from eastern Qinghai, southern Gansu and southwestern Shaanxi south to western Sichuan.
It is a medium-sized evergreen tree growing to 25-40 m tall, and with a trunk diameter of up to 1.5 m. The shoots are orange-brown, with scattered pubescence. The leaves are needle-like, 1-2.5 cm long, rhombic in cross-section, greyish-green to bluish-green with conspicuous stomatal lines. The cones are cylindric-conic, 6-15 cm long and 2-3 cm broad, maturing pale brown 5-7 months after pollination, and have stiff, rounded to bluntly pointed scales.
It is a variable species with several varieties listed. These were mostly first described as distinct species (and are still so treated by some authors), though they differ only in minor details and some may not prove to be distinct at all if a larger population is examined:
- Picea asperata var. asperata. Cones 6-12 cm; cone scales with a rounded apex.
- Picea asperata var. aurantiaca (syn. P. aurantiaca). Shoots orange.
- Picea asperata var. heterolepis (syn. P. heterolepis). Shoots hairless; cone scales with a rhombic apex.
- Picea asperata var. ponderosa. Cones large, 12-15 cm.
- Picea asperata var. retroflexa (syn. P. retroflexa). Shoots yellowish.
The species is currently not listed as threatened, but lately the numbers have been declining due to deforestation caused by the logging industry of that region.
It is occasionally grown as an ornamental tree in Europe and North America.
[edit] References and external links
- Conifer Specialist Group (1998). Picea asperata. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
- Gymnosperm Database: Picea asperata
