Identification: Giant Sequoia?

Discussion in 'Gymnosperms (incl. Conifers)' started by Wetcoaster, May 1, 2011.

  1. Wetcoaster

    Wetcoaster Member

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    Hi everyone. Thank you, UBC, for hosting this forum. I'm a Vancouver native, now in Nanaimo.

    I've come across two trees which have me puzzled, and could use some help. I'm pretty sure that one's a Giant Sequioa (Sequoiadendron giganteum), which is here in Nanaimo. The other one, in Vancouver, looks very similar in form (pyramidal), size (15-20m.), branching (sort of flipped-up and brush-like), and needles. But their cones, needle orientation, seeds, and bark are different. The Vancouver tree's bark is fairly smooth and stringy, like red cedar, while the Nanaimo tree's bark is deeply furrowed, but still with a stringy, red cedar surface.

    The first group of shots show the Vancouver samples on the left, and Nanaimo's on the right, and then individual shots of the Vancouver tree's large cones, seeds (non-winged) that fell out of those large cones, a very small cone, and needles.

    I'll make another post for the shots of the Nanaimo tree.
     

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  2. Wetcoaster

    Wetcoaster Member

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    Here are shots of the Nanaimo tree. Note the seeds have wings, and the needles are much tighter to the stems, and the cones are much more solid, than the Vancouver tree.

    Thanks for any help!
     

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  3. danc

    danc Active Member 10 Years

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    Hi Wetcoaster, right, it looks like Sequoiadendron giganteum and the other one like Cryptomeria japonica...
     
  4. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Ditto to Sugi Cryptomeria japonica for the Vancouver tree, and Giant Sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum for the Nanaimo tree.

    The 'very small cone' is a pollen (i.e., male) cone.
     
  5. Wetcoaster

    Wetcoaster Member

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    Thank you very much, Danc and Michael F., for your quick replies. I was quite certain of the Giant Sequoia, because I have easy reference materials available for plants that grow in my part of the world. But I couldn't find anything to identify that Sugi (Japanese cedar).

    I just found a reference that explains their general similarities; they are both in the same family (Taxodiaceae).

    By the way, some family connections have just been brought up here. I see that Danc is from Romania; my father's homeland, Michael F. is from Britain; where part of my mother's family is from, and one of these trees is native to Japan, where my mother grew up. Interesting.

    Thanks again, and happy spring!
     
  6. danc

    danc Active Member 10 Years

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    Nice, Wetcoaster, the world is in fact so small...

    How could I not recognize those two conifers when I have them in my garden. Moreover, here are some cuttings on which I have been waiting for the last 3 months to produce roots. The cryptomeria seems to have started to push new growth, I am not sure though. I took that cutting from a young specimen started from seed. There is also a cutting of a cryptomeria cultivar - Jindai Sugi

    P5020525.jpg
     
  7. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Both now treated in Cupressaceae - the old family Taxodiaceae proved not to be genetically distinct from the cypress family (with the exception of Sciadopitys, now treated in a family all its own, Sciadopityaceae).
     
  8. Wetcoaster

    Wetcoaster Member

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    Thanks for the extra info, Michael. I appreciate your expertise.
     

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