Chilgoza Pine
Encyclopedia
Pinus gerardiana, known as the Chilgoza Pine(Urdu: چلغوزا پائن in Persian it means 40 nuts in one cone:چهل و غوزه), 'noosa', or 'neoza', is a pine
native to the northwestern Himalaya in eastern Afghanistan
, Pakistan
, and northwest India
, growing at elevations between 1800–3350 m. It often occurs in association with Blue Pine
(Pinus wallichiana) and Deodar Cedar
(Cedrus deodara).
The tree
s are 10-20(-25) m tall with usually deep, wide and open crowns
with long, erect branches. However, crowns are narrower and shallower in dense forests. The bark
is very flaky, peeling to reveal light greyish-green patches, similar to the closely related Lacebark Pine (Pinus bungeana). The branchlets are smooth and olive-green. The leaves
are needle-like, in fascicles of 3, 6–10 cm long, spreading stiffly, glossy green on the outer surface, with blue-green stomatal lines on the inner face; the sheaths falling in the first year. The cones
are 10–18 cm long, 9–11 cm wide when open, with wrinkled, reflexed apophyses and an umbo curved inward at the base. The seed
s (pine nut
s) are 17–23 mm long and 5–7 mm broad, with a thin shell and a rudimentary wing.
This species is listed as lower risk, near threatened. Overcutting, and intensive grazing causing poor regeneration, may result in the extinction of this pine species. The Himachal Pradesh State Forest Department has tried artificial regeneration
of Chilgoza Pine at many places. However, performance of seedlings was found to be very poor.
The scientific name commemorates Captain Gerard, a British
army officer in India. It was introduced to England in 1839, where it grows well in the warmer drier areas of the southeast, but is very rarely planted.
Chilgoza Pine is well known for its edible seeds, rich in carbohydrate
s and protein
s. The seeds are locally called and marketed as "Chilgoza", "Neja" (singular) or "Neje" (plural). Chilgoza is one of the most important cash crops of tribal people residing in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh
, India
.It can be rightly established that in India, it is found only in Kinnaur, besides few other places in the world including Kabul. The seed is very expensive and fetches good money to the local people in Kinnaur. Sold at approximately INR 1800-2400 ($40-$53) per kilogram.
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:...
native to the northwestern Himalaya in eastern Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, and northwest India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, growing at elevations between 1800–3350 m. It often occurs in association with Blue Pine
Blue Pine
Pinus wallichiana is a pine native to the Himalaya, Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountains, from eastern Afghanistan east across northern Pakistan and India to Yunnan in southwest China. It grows at high altitudes in mountain valleys at altitudes of 1800–4300 m , and is a tree from 30–50 m in height...
(Pinus wallichiana) and Deodar Cedar
Deodar Cedar
Cedrus deodara is a species of cedar native to the western Himalayas in eastern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan, north-central India , southwesternmost Tibet and western Nepal, occurring at 1500–3200 m altitude...
(Cedrus deodara).
The 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...
s are 10-20(-25) m tall with usually deep, wide and open crowns
Crown (botany)
The crown of a plant refers to the totality of the plant's aboveground parts, including stems, leaves, and reproductive structures. A plant canopy consists of one or more plant crowns growing in a given area....
with long, erect branches. However, crowns are narrower and shallower in dense forests. 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 very flaky, peeling to reveal light greyish-green patches, similar to the closely related Lacebark Pine (Pinus bungeana). The branchlets are smooth and olive-green. 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 needle-like, in fascicles of 3, 6–10 cm long, spreading stiffly, glossy green on the outer surface, with blue-green stomatal lines on the inner face; the sheaths falling in the first year. 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 10–18 cm long, 9–11 cm wide when open, with wrinkled, reflexed apophyses and an umbo curved inward at the base. The 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 (pine nut
Pine nut
Pine nuts are the edible seeds of pines . About 20 species of pine produce seeds large enough to be worth harvesting; in other pines the seeds are also edible, but are too small to be of great value as a human food....
s) are 17–23 mm long and 5–7 mm broad, with a thin shell and a rudimentary wing.
This species is listed as lower risk, near threatened. Overcutting, and intensive grazing causing poor regeneration, may result in the extinction of this pine species. The Himachal Pradesh State Forest Department has tried artificial regeneration
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
of Chilgoza Pine at many places. However, performance of seedlings was found to be very poor.
The scientific name commemorates Captain Gerard, a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
army officer in India. It was introduced to England in 1839, where it grows well in the warmer drier areas of the southeast, but is very rarely planted.
Uses
Carbohydrate
A carbohydrate is an organic compound with the empirical formula ; that is, consists only of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with a hydrogen:oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 . However, there are exceptions to this. One common example would be deoxyribose, a component of DNA, which has the empirical...
s and protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
s. The seeds are locally called and marketed as "Chilgoza", "Neja" (singular) or "Neje" (plural). Chilgoza is one of the most important cash crops of tribal people residing in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.It can be rightly established that in India, it is found only in Kinnaur, besides few other places in the world including Kabul. The seed is very expensive and fetches good money to the local people in Kinnaur. Sold at approximately INR 1800-2400 ($40-$53) per kilogram.
