Podocarpus lawrencei is a species of podocarp

Podocarpus

Podocarpus is a genus of conifers, the most numerous and widely distributed of the podocarp family Podocarpaceae. The 105 species of Podocarpus are evergreen shrubs or trees from 1-25 m in height...

 native throughout the Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n high country, from southern Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

 through to the New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 highlands. Common names are Errinundra Plum-pine and Mountain Plum-pine (though it is neither a pine

Pine

Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...

 nor a plum

Plum

A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera in the shoots having a terminal bud and solitary side buds , the flowers in groups of one to five together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one...

). It grows on exposed sites to 1,800 m, often forming living carpets over rocks through wind pruning.

The 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....

 are 1 cm long and 2-3 mm broad, green, often reddish-tinted, particularly so in cold winter weather. It has small bright red berry-like 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...

, with a 5-10 mm long red aril and one (rarely two) apical 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 6-8 mm long; they are eaten by birds and marsupials, but are toxic to most other mammals (including humans).

Whilst it is normally low growing, rarely reaching more than 1 m in the Australian Alps

Australian Alps

The Australian Alps are the highest mountain ranges of mainland Australia. They are located in southeastern Australia and straddle the Australian Capital Territory, south-eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria...

, on the Errinundra Plateau in eastern Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

 it reaches 15 m height. The timber is too rare to be used for woodcrafts.

There has been some debate over whether Podocarpus lawrencei is really a separate species from Podocarpus alpinus

Podocarpus alpinus

Podocarpus alpinus is a species of conifer in the Podocarpaceae family. It is a shrub about 2-2.5 m tall . It is found only in Australia .-Cultivation and uses:...

; some botanists treat it 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 that species. The name is frequently misspelled as lawrencii.

Cultivation

Mountain Plum-pine is tolerant of quite dry conditions and can resprout after losing all its leaves from drought. It survives −16°C to 45°C and grows well in full sun or fairly heavy shade. It is slow growing, putting on about 3-5 cm of length each year. It can be grown from cuttings or seed. New foliage is usually a lime green, darkening to olive green as it hardens.

Ideally the Mountain Plum-pine should be grown in full sunlight with plenty of water. It makes a good indoor plant in a bright window. It is an excellent bonsai

Bonsai

is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers. Similar practices exist in other cultures, including the Chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated, and the miniature living landscapes of Vietnamese hòn non bộ...

or hedging plant, although it does require patience.