Himalayan spruce

It grows in the Himalayas in several countries: Afghanistan ( Hindu Kush ), Pakistan ( Karakorum and Gilgit ), India ( Kashmir , Himachal Pradesh , Uttar Pradesh ) Nepal, China (Southern Tibet).

Alpine species, found in the west of the Himalayas and in neighboring mountains at altitudes from 2300 to 3600 meters above sea level, in a humid monsoon climate, with heavy rainfall in two rainy seasons, but in the western parts of the range the climate gradually becomes drier. Part of the precipitation falls in the form of snow, which accumulates during the winter. In the eastern regions of its range, it usually adjoins Abies spectabilis , Pinus wallichiana and Tsuga dumosa , and in the western regions, Abies pindrow and Cedrus deodara . In the lower limits of its settlement, it is mixed with various broad-leaved species, for example Quercus spp., Acer .spp., Prunus spp., Ulmus spp. and Aesculus indica . Resists frosts down to -12.2 - -17.7 ° C.

Evergreen trees up to 60 m high, with a trunk diameter of up to 2 m, with a conical crown formed by widely spaced drooping branches of the first order and long hanging branches of the second order. The bark is pale brown, cracks broken into irregularly shaped plates. Branches are pale brown or pale gray, bare. Needles of needles stick out in the radial direction, they are curved forward, thin, tetrahedral in cross section, 33–55 mm long, 1.3–1.8 mm thick, with 2–5 stomata on each surface, the ends of the needles are sharp. Young seed cones are green, ripe brown, shiny, cylindrical in size, 10-18 x 4.5-5 cm in size. Seed flakes are wide-obovate, thick, about 3 × 2.4 cm in size. The seeds are dark brown, about 5 in size. mm, with wings 10-15 mm.

Picea smithiana ( Wall. ) Boiss. Flora Orientalis 5: 700 . 1884.

A species epithet is given in honor of a gardener (Smith) in Hoptown, Scotland, who was reportedly the first to grow this tree in Scotland in the 1820s ^[1] .

Synonyms

A number of synonyms are known ^[2] , the species epithet of a number of synonyms “morinda” is sometimes used to refer to trees of this species.

Homotypic synonyms

• Pinus smithiana Wall. Pl. Asiat. Rar. 3: 24 (1832) basionym
• Abies smithiana (Wall.) Lindl. Penny Cyclop. 1:31 (1833)

Heterotypic synonyms

• Pinus khutrow Royle ex Turra in JFRoyle, Ill. Bot. Himal. Mts .: 350, t. 84, f. 1 (1839)
• Abies khutrow (Royle ex Turra) Loudon Encycl. Trees Shrubs: 1032 (1842)
• Picea morinda Link Linnaea 15: 522 (1842)
• Pinus pendula griff. J. Trav. 1: 287 (1847), nom. illeg.
• Abies morinda (Link) Wender. Pfl. Bot. Gärt. 1 (Conif.): 16 (1851)
• Picea khutrow (Royle ex Turra) Carrière Traité Gén. Conif .: 258 (1855)
• Pinus morinda gordon & glend. Pinetum: 12 (1858), not validly publ.
• Picea smithiana var. pendula Sénécl. Conifères: 32 (1868)
• Picea smithiana var. nepalensis Franco Enum. Fl. Pl. Nepal 1: 26 (1978)
• Picea smithiana subsp. nepalensis (Franco) Silba J. Int. Conifer Preserv. Soc. 15: 60 (2008)

It can serve as a source of industrial wood, it is used as a building material for the manufacture of large-sized structures, for the construction of houses, roofs and floors, and furniture. Large volumes, after processing with preservatives, were used for railway sleepers. Relatively light weight combined with strength made this wood attractive for aircraft construction, in particular the manufacture of gliders, but now it is used extremely limited.

The plant is cultivated for regenerative plantations and as an ornamental tree, with characteristic hanging branches with long needles and large cones.

• Picea smithiana // Flora of China : [ eng. ] = 中国 植物 志 : in 25 vol. / ed. by Z. Wu , PH Raven , . - Beijing: Science Press; St. Louis: Missouri Botanical Garden Press, 1999 .-- Vol. 4: Cycadaceae through Fagaceae. - P. 29. - 453 p. - ISBN 978-0-915279-34-0 . - ISBN 978-0-915279-70-8 (vol. 4).

• Picea smithiana (English) : Tropicos taxon information.
• Picea smithiana (长 叶 云杉) description / Christopher J. Earle (ed.) // The Gymnosperm Database.