Tetraclinis articulata

Plant Characteristics

Height:	⇕	50 ft"ft" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 50.
Width:	⇔	25 ft"ft" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 25.

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	sun
Features:	✓	bonsai
USDA Zones:		9 to 11

Scientific Names

Cupressaceae >

Tetraclinis >

articulata >

Tetraclinis forest at Al Hoceima National Park

Tetraclinis is a genus of evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, containing only one species, Tetraclinis articulata, also known as Sandarac or the Barbary thuja, endemic to the western Mediterranean region. It grows at relatively low altitudes in a hot, dry subtropical Mediterranean climate.

Tetraclinis cones at Al Hoceima National Park

It is a small, slow-growing tree, to 6–15 m (rarely 20 m) tall and 0.5 m (rarely 1 m) trunk diameter, often with two or more trunks from the base. The foliage forms in open sprays with scale-like leaves 1–8 mm long and 1–1.5 mm broad; the leaves are arranged in opposite decussate pairs, with the successive pairs closely then distantly spaced, so forming apparent whorls of four. The cones are 10–15 mm long, green ripening brown in about 8 months from pollination, and have four thick scales arranged in two opposite pairs. The seeds are 5–7 mm long and 2 mm broad, with a 3–4 mm broad papery wing on each side.

It is one of only a small number of conifers able to coppice (re-grow by sprouting from stumps), an adaptation to survive wildfire and moderate levels of browsing by animals. Old trees that have sprouted repeatedly over a long period form large burrs at the base, known as lupias.

The species has also been used in Bonsai. It is grown as an ornamental tree, valued in hot, dry climates; it can be trimmed as a hedge.

Read about Tetraclinis articulata in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Callitris quadrivalvis, Vent. (Thuja articulata, Vahl). Arab-tree. Sandarach. Gum Tree. Small tree, with fragrant hard durable wood: branches jointed and spreading: Ivs. very small, flattened, distichous, reduced to scales at the nodes: cone 4-sided, small, the valves oval and with a protuberance near the tip. N. Afr., in the mts. —Furnishes varnish resin (gum sandarach). CH The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Cultivation

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Gallery

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  A cup made of root burr wood from the Essaouira area of Morocco

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  Illustration from Koehler's Medicinal-Plants (1887)

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  photo 3

References

• Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963

External links

• w:Tetraclinis articulata. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
• Tetraclinis articulata QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)