Libocedrus

Plant Characteristics

Cultivation

Scientific Names

Libocedrus >

Read about Libocedrus in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Libocedrus (libas, drop, tear, and Cedrus; alluding to the resinous character of the trees). Syn. Heyderia. Pinaceae. Incense Cedar. Ornamental trees chiefly grown for their handsome evergreen foliage and good habit. Branchlets flattened, rarely quadrangular, frond-like in arrangement: leaves scale-like, with decurrent base, with or without glands: flowers monoecious or dioecious, terminal, similar to those of Thuya: cones oblong to ovate, with 4, rarely 6, woody scales, the lower pair sterile, small and short, the second one much larger and fertile, each scale bearing 2 long-winged seeds, the third pair, if present, connate into a woody septum.— Eight species in W., N. and S. Amer., Austral. and S. W. China. Allied to Thuya which differs chiefly in the more numerous cone-scales with 2 pairs fertile. The incense cedars are of pyramidal habit, clothed with small scale-like leaves, and rather small, ovate or oblong cones. None of the species is quite hardy North, but L. decurrens thrives in the vicinity of the city of New York, and even in sheltered places in eastern Massachusetts. It is a valuable park tree, forming a symmetrical narrow pyramid, with bright green foliage. It is also an important timber tree, the wood being light, soft, close and straight-grained, is very durable in the soil, and is used for fencing, for shingles, for the interior finish of houses, and also for ship- and boat-building. The other species are hardy only South, and, though very ornamental trees, they are hardly cultivated in this country; they are all important timber trees in their native countries. The incense cedars thrive best in a well-drained soil, and prefer open situations; they are liable to lose their lower branches rather early. Propagate by seeds sown in spring; also by cuttings under glass in late summer or fall, which root rather slowly.; sometimes grafted on thuya and chamaecyparis. 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 It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article.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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Propagation

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Pests and diseases

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Species

Read about Libocedrus in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

L. chilensis Endl. Tree, to 60 ft., with compact, pyramidal bead: branchlets much compressed: leaves glaucous green, small, erect-spreading, obtuse, with a silvery line beneath: cones ovate-oblong, 1/2 in. long. Chile. CH L. cupressoides Sarg. (L. tetragona, Eudl.). Tree, to 100 ft., with compact, pyramidal head, sometimes shrubby: branchlets almost tetragonal: Leaves ovate or ovate-lanceolate, with slightly spreading and acute apex: cones ovate; scales with a large, curved spine on the back. Chile to Patagonia. CH L. Doniana, Endl. (syn. L. plumosa).CH L. macrolepis, Benth. & Hook. Tree, to 100 ft.: branchlets compressed, green on both sides: leaves acute, the lateral strongly keeled, the middle ones obovate, apiculate: cones obovate-oblong, 1 in. long, consisting of 6 truncate scales. W.China. CH L. plumosa, Sarg. (L. Doniana, Endl.). Tree, to 100 ft., with dense, pyramidal head; similar to the former, but leaves larger, more closely set and more spreading, without any silvery line beneath: scales of the cone with a large, curved spine on the back. New Zeal. This species is the most tender of this genus.CH L. tetragona. Endl. (syn. L. cupressoides). CH 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.

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References

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

External links

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