CEDAR

'Cedar', in a strict botanical sense, refers to those trees belonging to the genus ''Cedrus'' in the coniferous plant family Pinaceae although the name is commonly used for other plants as well (see below). They are most closely related to the Firs (''Abies''), sharing a very similar cone structure. They are native to the mountains of the western Himalaya and the Mediterranean region, occurring at altitudes of 1,500–3200 m in the Himalaya and 1,000–2,200 m in the Mediterranean.

They are trees up to 40–50 m (occasionally 60 m) tall with spicy-resinous scented wood, thick ridged or square-cracked bark, and broad, level branches. The shoots are dimorphic, with long shoots, which form the framework of the branches, and short shoots, which carry most of the leaves. The leaves are evergreen and needle-like, 8–60 mm long, arranged singly in an open spiral phyllotaxis on long shoots, and in dense spiral clusters on short shoots; they vary from bright grass-green to dark green to strongly glaucous pale blue-green, depending on the thickness of the white wax layer which protects the leaves from desiccation. The cones are barrel-shaped, 6–12 cm long, and, as in ''Abies'', disintegrate at maturity to release the winged seeds. The seeds are 10–15 mm long, with a 20–30 mm wing; as in ''Abies'', the seeds have 2–3 resin blisters, containing an unpleasant-tasting resin, thought to be a defence against squirrel predation. Cone maturation takes one year, with pollination in September-October and the seeds maturing the same time a year later. Cedars are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Pine Processionary and Turnip Moth (recorded on Deodar Cedar).
There are five taxa of ''Cedrus'', assigned according to taxonomic opinion to two to four different species:

★ 'Deodar Cedar' ''Cedrus deodara''. Western Himalaya. Leaves bright green to pale glaucous green, 25–60 mm; cones with slightly ridged scales.

★ 'Lebanon Cedar' or 'Cedar of Lebanon' ''Cedrus libani''. Mountains of the Mediterranean region, from Turkey and Lebanon west to Morocco. Leaves dark green to glaucous blue-green, 8–25 mm; cones with smooth scales; four varieties, which are treated as species by many authors:

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★ 'Lebanon Cedar' ''Cedrus libani'' var. ''libani'' Mountains of Lebanon, western Syria and south-central Turkey. Leaves dark green to glaucous blue-green, 10–25 mm.

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★ 'Turkish Cedar' ''Cedrus libani'' var. ''stenocoma'' Mountains of southwest Turkey. Leaves glaucous blue-green, 8–25 mm.

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★ 'Cyprus Cedar' ''Cedrus libani'' var. ''brevifolia'' or ''Cedrus brevifolia''. Mountains of Cyprus. Leaves glaucous blue-green, 8–20 mm.

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★ 'Atlas Cedar' ''Cedrus libani'' var. ''atlantica'' or ''Cedrus atlantica''. Atlas mountains in Morocco & Algeria. Leaves dark green to glaucous blue-green, 10–25 mm.

Contents

Etymology

Uses

References and external links

Etymology

Both the Latin word ''cedrus'' and the generic name ''Cedrus'' are derived from the Greek 'kedros'. Ancient Greek and Latin used the same word, ''kedros'' and ''cedrus'' respectively, for different species of plants now classified in the genera ''Cedrus'' and ''Juniperus'' (juniper). As species of ''Juniperus'' are native to the area where Greek language and culture originated but species of ''Cedrus'' are not, and the word "kedros" does not seem to be derived from any of the languages of the Middle East, the word probably originally applied to Greek species of juniper and was later adopted for species now classified in the genus ''Cedrus'' because of the similarity of their aromatic woods (Meiggs 1982). The name "cedar" has been widely applied to many other trees with scented wood, including the genera ''Calocedrus'' ("incense-cedars"), ''Chamaecyparis'' and ''Thuja'' ("whitecedar", "Western Redcedar"), ''Cryptomeria'' (Japanese cedar"), and ''Juniperus'' ("Eastern Redcedar", "Mountain-cedar") in the family Cupressaceae; ''Cedrela'' ("Spanish-cedar") and ''Toona'' ("Australian Redcedar") in the family Meliaceae; and ''Tamarix'' ("Saltcedar") in the family Tamaricaceae.

Uses

Cedars are very popular ornamental trees, widely used in horticulture in temperate climates where winter temperatures do not fall below about -25° C (the Turkish Cedar is slightly hardier, to -30° C or just below). They are also grown for their durable (decay-resistant) scented wood, most famously used in the construction of King Solomon's temple in Jerusalem provided by King Hiram, or Ahiram, of Tyre, Lebanon, circa 1,000 BC. The wood is also used for humbler purposes requiring resistance to weather, such as shakes and shingles. Cedar wood and cedar oil is known to be a natural repellent to moths [1], hence hope chests were made of cedar when available. Extensive reforestation of cedar is carried out in the Mediterranean region, particularly Turkey, where over 50 million young cedars are being planted annually.

References and external links

★ Arboretum de Villardebelle - cone photos (scroll to bottom of page)

★ Arboretum de Villardebelle - Turkey some photos of ''Cedrus libani'' var. ''stenocoma'' in the wild

★ 1911 Britannica "Cedar"

★ Christou K. A., (1991). The genetic and taxonomic status of Cyprus Cedar, ''Cendrus brevifolia'' (Hook.) Henry. Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Greece.

★ Gymnosperm Database - Cedrus

★ Greuter, W., Burdet, H. M., & Long, G. (eds.), (1984). ''Med-Checklist – A critical inventory of vascular plants of the circum-mediterranean countries''.

★ The maturation and dispersal of cedar cones and seeds. ''International Dendrology Society Yearbook'' 1993: 43-46 (1994).

★ Güner, A., Özhatay, N., Ekim, T., & Başer, K. H. C. (ed.). 2000. ''Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands'' 11 (Supplement 2): 5-6. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 0-7486-1409-5

★ Meiggs, R. 1982. Trees and Timber in the Ancient Mediterranean World.

★ Meikle, R. D., (1977). Flora of Cyprus (Vol. One). Bentham - Moxon Trust, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. London.