View source for Nothofagus dombeyi

{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Nothofagus dombeyi''
| status = LR/lc
| image = Nothofagus_dombeyi.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Fagales]]
| familia = [[Nothofagaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Nothofagus]]''
| species = '''''N. dombeyi'''''
| binomial = ''Nothofagus dombeyi''
| binomial_authority = Mirb. (Oerst.)
}}

'''''Nothofagus dombeyi''''' ('''Coihue''') is a [[tree]] [[species]] that inhabits the [[Andes]] of the [[Argentina|Argentine]] [[Patagonia]] and central [[Chile]], between 700 and 1,200 [[metre|m]] above mean sea level. It forms dense [[forest]]s, like those found in the [[Los Alerces National Park|Los Alerces]] and [[Nahuel Huapi National Park|Nahuel Huapi]] [[national parks of Argentina|national parks]]. It thrives in low hills with gentle slopes, being very demanding of water and soil; the largest forests are found on the slopes looking south, and the healthier specimens tend to grow on the banks of rivers and lakes. It sometimes forms mixed forests with ''[[Araucaria araucana]]'' (monkey-puzzle) trees, for example in the [[Villarrica National Park]] in Chile.

The coihue usually has elegant [[branch]]es, and can become a large tree, up to 45 m high and 1.9 m in diameter. One tree, felled by a storm in [[1954]], reportedly measured 2.55 m in diameter at the height of a man's chest and a total volume, including the branches, of 87 [[cubic metre|m³]].

The [[leaf|leaves]] are [[evergreen]], small (25-40 [[millimetre|mm]] long and 10-16 mm wide), thick, coriaceous and lustrous, dark green, with toothed borders and an acute apex. The tree is [[hermaphrodite|hermaphroditic]]; male and female [[flower]]s are usually grouped in threes. The [[fruit]] is a triangular [[nut (fruit)|nut]] that measures about 4-7 mm.

Coihue [[timber]] is considered excellent. In Argentina its exploitation is limited by the presence of the best forests within national parks. The wood is bright grayish white; the [[heartwood]] is a pale pink-white, which darkens after cut. Its texture is very fine and makes it easy to work with.

The name of the tree is often spelled '''''coigüe''''' (reflecting the common pronunciation with an [[epenthesis|epenthetic]] ''g''). Other related trees named ''coihue'' are the '''Coihue de Magallanes''' (''Nothofagus betuloides''), and the '''Coihue de Chiloé''' (''Nothofagus nitida'').