Chamaecyparis formosensis
Encyclopedia
{Taxobox
| image = Chamaecyparis formosensis.jpg
| image_caption = Chamaecyparis formosensis
| status = EN | status_system = IUCN2.3
| regnum = Plant
ae
| divisio = Pinophyta
| classis = Pinopsida
| ordo = Pinales
| familia = Cupressaceae
| genus = Chamaecyparis
| species = C. formosensis
| binomial = Chamaecyparis formosensis
| binomial_authority = Matsum.
}HI BRADY}
Chamaecyparis formosensis (Formosan Cypress; Chinese
: 紅檜/红桧 hong kuai) is a species of Chamaecyparis
, endemic to Taiwan
, where it grows in the central mountains at moderate to high altitudes of 1000–2900 m. It is threatened by habitat loss and over-cutting for its valuable timber.
It is a slow-growing, but long-lived and ultimately large to very large coniferous
tree
growing to 55–60 m tall with a trunk up to 7 m in diameter. The bark
is red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult leaves
are scale-like, 1–3 mm long, with pointed tips, green both above and below with only an inconspicuous stoma
tal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leaves, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long, soft and glaucous bluish-green. The cones
are ovoid-oblong, 6–12 mm long and 4–8 mm diameter, with 8–16 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.
ese Chamaecyparis pisifera
(Sawara Cypress), which differs in smaller globose cones 4–8 mm long with 6–10 scales.
is soft, very resistant to decay, and strongly scented; it is highly valued in traditional Taiwanese building, particularly for temple
s and shrine
s. This has led to excessive harvesting, resulting in the species now being endangered. A small number of the oldest and largest specimens are protected as national monuments, but much of the general population of the species still remains unprotected.
| image = Chamaecyparis formosensis.jpg
| image_caption = Chamaecyparis formosensis
| status = EN | status_system = IUCN2.3
| regnum = Plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
ae
| divisio = Pinophyta
Pinophyta
The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being...
| classis = Pinopsida
Pinophyta
The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being...
| ordo = Pinales
Pinales
The Order Pinales in the Division Pinophyta, Class Pinopsida comprises all the extant conifers. This order was formerly known as the Coniferales....
| familia = Cupressaceae
Cupressaceae
The Cupressaceae or cypress family is a conifer family with worldwide distribution. The family includes 27 to 30 genera , which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130-140 species in total. They are monoecious, subdioecious or dioecious trees and shrubs from 1-116 m tall...
| genus = Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis is a genus of conifers in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to eastern Asia and western and eastern North America. In the nursery trade it is often incorrectly known as "false cypress" for lack of other common name, so as to distinguish it from other similar genera bearing...
| species = C. formosensis
| binomial = Chamaecyparis formosensis
| binomial_authority = Matsum.
}HI BRADY}
Chamaecyparis formosensis (Formosan Cypress; Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
: 紅檜/红桧 hong kuai) is a species of Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis
Chamaecyparis is a genus of conifers in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to eastern Asia and western and eastern North America. In the nursery trade it is often incorrectly known as "false cypress" for lack of other common name, so as to distinguish it from other similar genera bearing...
, endemic to Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, where it grows in the central mountains at moderate to high altitudes of 1000–2900 m. It is threatened by habitat loss and over-cutting for its valuable timber.
Growth
HI BRADYIt is a slow-growing, but long-lived and ultimately large to very large coniferous
Pinophyta
The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
growing to 55–60 m tall with a trunk up to 7 m in 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 red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult 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 scale-like, 1–3 mm long, with pointed tips, green both above and below with only an inconspicuous 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...
tal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leaves, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long, soft and glaucous bluish-green. The 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 ovoid-oblong, 6–12 mm long and 4–8 mm diameter, with 8–16 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.
Related species
It is most closely related to the JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese Chamaecyparis pisifera
Chamaecyparis pisifera
Chamaecyparis pisifera Chamaecyparis pisifera Chamaecyparis pisifera (Sawara Cypress or Sawara is a species of false cypress, native to central and southern Japan, on the islands of Honshū and Kyūshū....
(Sawara Cypress), which differs in smaller globose cones 4–8 mm long with 6–10 scales.
Characteristics
The woodWood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
is soft, very resistant to decay, and strongly scented; it is highly valued in traditional Taiwanese building, particularly for temple
Temple
A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...
s and shrine
Shrine
A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....
s. This has led to excessive harvesting, resulting in the species now being endangered. A small number of the oldest and largest specimens are protected as national monuments, but much of the general population of the species still remains unprotected.