Calocedrus macrolepis
Encyclopedia
Calocedrus macrolepis (Chinese Incense-cedar; ) is a conifer native to southwest China
(Guangdong
west to Yunnan
), northern Vietnam
, northern Laos
, extreme northern Thailand
and northeastern Myanmar
.
It is a medium-size tree to 25-35 m tall, with a trunk up to 2 m diameter. The bark
is orange-brown weathering greyish, smooth at first, becoming fissured and exfoliating in long strips on the lower trunk on old trees. The foliage is produced in flattened sprays with scale-like leaves
1.5–8 mm long; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs, with the successive pairs closely then distantly spaced, so forming apparent whorls of four; the facial pairs are flat, with the lateral pairs folded over their bases. The upper side of the foliage sprays is glossy green without stoma
ta, the underside is white with dense stomata.
The seed cones
are 10–20 mm long, pale purple with a whitish wax coating, with four (rarely six) scales arranged in opposite decussate pairs; the outer pair of scales each bears two winged seed
s, the inner pair(s) usually being sterile; the cones are borne on a 1–2 cm long peduncle covered in very small (1 mm) scale leaves. The cones turn brown when mature about 8 months after pollination. The pollen cones are 4–8 mm long.
It is closely related to Calocedrus formosana
, with the latter often treated as a variety
of C. macrolepis. They differ most obviously in the shorter cone stem, only 5 mm long, of C. formosana.
The species is still fairly widespread and frequent in the wild, though threatened by over-harvesting for its valuable wood; it is also extensively planted within its native range for wood production. It is categorised by the IUCN as Vulnerable.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
west to Yunnan
Yunnan
Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
), northern Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, northern Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, extreme northern Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and northeastern Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
.
It is a medium-size tree to 25-35 m tall, with a trunk up to 2 m diameter. The bark
Bark
Bark is the outermost layers of stems and roots of woody plants. Plants with bark include trees, woody vines and shrubs. Bark refers to all the tissues outside of the vascular cambium and is a nontechnical term. It overlays the wood and consists of the inner bark and the outer bark. The inner...
is orange-brown weathering greyish, smooth at first, becoming fissured and exfoliating in long strips on the lower trunk on old trees. The foliage is produced in flattened sprays with scale-like leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
1.5–8 mm long; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs, with the successive pairs closely then distantly spaced, so forming apparent whorls of four; the facial pairs are flat, with the lateral pairs folded over their bases. The upper side of the foliage sprays is glossy green without stoma
Stoma
In botany, a stoma is a pore, found in the leaf and stem epidermis that is used forgas exchange. The pore is bordered by a pair of specialized parenchyma cells known as guard cells that are responsible for regulating the size of the opening...
ta, the underside is white with dense stomata.
The seed cones
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
are 10–20 mm long, pale purple with a whitish wax coating, with four (rarely six) scales arranged in opposite decussate pairs; the outer pair of scales each bears two winged seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s, the inner pair(s) usually being sterile; the cones are borne on a 1–2 cm long peduncle covered in very small (1 mm) scale leaves. The cones turn brown when mature about 8 months after pollination. The pollen cones are 4–8 mm long.
It is closely related to Calocedrus formosana
Calocedrus formosana
Calocedrus formosana is a conifer endemic to Taiwan.-Descriptions:It is a medium-size tree to 20-25 m tall, with a trunk up to 3 m diameter...
, with the latter often treated as a variety
Variety (biology)
In botanical nomenclature, variety is a taxonomic rank below that of species: as such, it gets a three-part infraspecific name....
of C. macrolepis. They differ most obviously in the shorter cone stem, only 5 mm long, of C. formosana.
The species is still fairly widespread and frequent in the wild, though threatened by over-harvesting for its valuable wood; it is also extensively planted within its native range for wood production. It is categorised by the IUCN as Vulnerable.