I rescued this potted plant from the dump about 5 or 6 years ago. I trimmed the dead branches off the lower trunk and planted it outside where it remains. Its 2 1/2 to 3' tall. In fall it turns brown and red, then yellow in spring and green in summer. It does not drop its needles and they are soft and rubbery. This year it is growing these spiney balls, maybe cones, for the first time. Any Ideas ? Pictures to follow. I forgot, i have to switch to Firefox to upload pics for some reason. Gimme a sec.
All the Araucariaceae are evergreen - if this is deciduous, it's something else. I'll wait for the pics . . .
Cryptomeria japonica cultivar 'Elegans' - a Japanese species in the Cupressaceae. The Japanese name is Sugi; it is sometimes called "Japanese Cedar" tho' it isn't a cedar (Cedrus)
I've found some pic's of those online. The needle structure looks different to me. Still its closer than anything else i found.
Sporne (1965,The Morphology of Gymnosperms) places Cryptomeria japonica in the family Taxodiaceae, and says p.142 "Cryptomeria japonica (Japanese Cedar, the only species of the genus, is restricted to Japan and parts of China. Its branches are in whorls, and the branchlets are eventually deciduous, along with the awl-shaped leaves." Ild14 has described Agathis from Gondwana which had two species: one evergreen, and the other deciduous. See Stockler, Daniel and Lockhart, 2002, Systematic Biology, V.51(5):827-832. The cones in the picture closely resemble the female cones of Kauri.ild14 is happy to be contacted re Araucariaceae at i.daniel@xtra.co.nz
Hi Ild, Taxodiaceae has been merged with Cupressaceae since Sporne's book - while a good book, it is now 40 years out of date! Agathis cones are very different - much larger than this (5-12cm diameter), and smooth, without the spines on the scales that Cryptomeria has Here's a close-up pic of Cryptomeria cones (from a typical plant), with foliage of the cultivar 'Elegans' to the right: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Cryjap.jpg
ild14 accepts your modern knowledge. I am obviously old and living in the past. I had just discovered the UBC Botanical Garden website, and got carried away, hoping to find out about my fossil flower. Now I am having trouble finding the thread I started. Ian Daniel
At the top of your post (any post you made) is your ID "ild14". Move the mouse cursor over that spot (it will change color) and click on it. You will be given a list of options including something like "find all posts...": click on that and Voila! Ralph