Koyama's Spruce
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| Picea koyamae Shiras. |
Koyama's Spruce (Picea koyamae) is a very rare spruce native to the mountains on the borders of Nagano and Toyama Prefectures in central Honshū, Japan, where it grows at 1500-2000 m altitude. It was named after Japanese botanist Mitsua Koyama.
It is a medium-sized evergreen tree growing to 20 m tall, and with a trunk diameter of up to 1 m. The shoots are orange-brown, with scattered pubescence. The leaves are needle-like, 8-16 mm long, rhombic in cross-section, dark bluish-green with conspicuous stomatal lines. The cones are cylindric-conic, 5-10 cm long and 2 cm broad, maturing pale brown 5-7 months after pollination, and have stiff, smoothly rounded scales.
It is occasionally planted as an ornamental tree. The wood is similar to that of other spruces, but the species is too rare to be of economic value.
[edit] References
- Conifer Specialist Group (1998). Picea koyamae. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Listed as Endangered (EN D v2.3)
- Gymnosperm Database: Picea koyamae
- Germplasm Resources Information Network: Picea koyamae
- Plant Gene Resources of Canada: Picea koyamae
