Fragrant tree
The Juniperus Sqyanata Lamb is an evergreen coniferous tree or shrub with lanceolate leaves that are either linear or whorled and fruits that are either rounded or oblong. As trees, they often stand tall and erect; however when found in the high mountains, they often grow into shorter shrubs with twisted branches to better withstand the cold winds of higher elevations.
The Juniperus Sqyanata Lamb is distributed throughout alpine tundra areas at altitudes above 3400m, usually beyond the timberline where other tall trees cannot survive. They often comprise vast areas of shrubbery atop high cliffs or ridges.
Berberis morrisonensis (Hayata)
Berberis morrisonensis are prickly, perennial, deciduous shrubs that are extensively branched; have obovate, sharp-toothed leaves; and fine, long, sharp and prickly nodes. Their flowers turn yellow in the summer, and their fruits and leaves turn from green to flaming red in the autumn. How tall they grow depends upon their environment and climate: they can grow up to 2m high in areas that provide shelter from the wind, such as near tree lines, but less than 1m high if unsheltered and subjected to strong winds. In the cold winter, their leaves will fall while flaming red fruits hang down from barren branches. Indeed, Berberis morrisonensis are winter-hardy plants whose buds always grow in April-May, sprouting up from barren branches even if covered with snow.
Berberis morrisonensis are distributed at 3200m elevations on either exposed ground or scattered amongst other shrubs, such as the Yushania niitakayamensis and the Juniperus Sqyanata Lamb.
Rhododendron pseudochrysanthum (Hayata)玉山杜鵑
Rhododendron pseudochrysanthum are evergreen trees or shrubs, depending on their natural environment, with elliptical leaves. Their white or pink flowers have bell-shaped corollas and are clustered together in an umbel, often at the front end of branches, and bloom between May and August. The Rhododendron pseudochrysanthum can survive on either vast open ground where sunshine is in abundance or in coniferous forests where there is little to no sunlight. In Abies or Tsuga forests, they usually grow to become tall and erect trees, whereas on barren rocky walls, they grow amongst Juniperus Sqyanata Lamb shrubs and develop twisted branches and twigs.
Rhododendron pseudochrysanthum are distributed in mountains at altitudes of 3100-3900m, the highest of any species in the rhododendron family.
Abies kawakamii (Hayata) Ito 臺灣冷杉
Abies kawakamii are evergreen coniferous trees with straight, erect trunks; depressed leaves that contain two lines of white stomata arranged in a spiral pattern underneath; and scaly, grayish-brown bark. A tree with monoecious flowers, the female flowers are dark red and cylindrical-shaped while the male flowers are spiked, dark yellow, and hang downwards. Their scarlet red cones stand upright, and unlike other types of coniferous trees, they gradually lose their cones' scales and seeds when they mature, falling to the ground. Found in the niches of mountain slopes and on the ridges of foothills, Abies kawakamii often form an extended, jigsaw-shaped range of green forests. The apex of the tree is its weakest point, and if broken, will often result in the death of the tree. Despite this weakness, seedlings are now being seen in increased numbers near the edges of mixed forests alongside Yushania niitakayamensis and Abies kawakamii.
Large coniferous forests of Abies kawakamii are widespread at the highest elevations in Taiwan. They have low commercial value and their wood is not highly sought out for production purposes because of the high costs involved with removing them from mountains. Consequently, Abies kawakamii are rarely cut or removed illegally, making them some of the best-preserved forests in Taiwan.
Abies kawakamii 臺灣冷杉
Evergreen coniferous trees, only found in Taiwan, with straight, erect trunks; depressed leaves that contain two lines of white stomata arranged in a spiral pattern underneath; and scaly, grayish-brown bark. A tree with monoecious flowers, the female flowers are dark red and cylindrical-shaped while the male flowers are spiked, dark yellow, and hang downwards. Their scarlet red cones stand upright, and unlike other types of coniferous trees, they gradually lose their cones' scales and seeds when they mature, falling to the ground. Found in the niches of mountain slopes and on the ridges of foothills, Abies kawakamii often form an extended, jigsaw-shaped range of green forests. The apex of the tree is its weakest point, and if broken, will often result in the loss of the tree's life. Despite this weakness, seedlings are now being seen in increased numbers near the edges of mixed forests alongside Yushania niitakayamensis and Abies kawakamii.
Picea morrisonicola (Hayata)Taiwan Spruce 臺灣雲杉
The Picea morrisonicola is a large, evergreen coniferous tree with linear leaves that tend to have rhombus- or other uneven polygonal-shaped crosscuts. Their cones are long, obovate-shaped, and hang on the front part of the trees' branches, which are verticillated. The Picea morrisonicola has gray or reddish-brown bark, and its branches are straighter and less dense than those of the Abies kawakamii. Sometimes, its branches will droop downward from the weight of snow, giving the entire tree the appearance of a scarecrow with two hanging arms. The Picea morrisonicola is considered the tallest tree in Taiwan.The Picea morrisonicola can be found in warm temperate climates at altitudes of 2500-3100m, an elevation range similar to that of the Tsuga chinensis formosana.
Tsuga chinensis var. formosana
Tsuga chinensis are large, evergreen coniferous trees that can stand up to 50m high. Their leaves are concentrated on the crowns and tips of their branches and twigs, which grow outward horizontally and give the tree the appearance of a very large, beautiful green umbrella when viewed from a distance. The Tsuga chinensis has a trunk that is straight and erect, depressed leaves that are arranged in a spiral, leaf apices that are either obtuse or retuse, and scaly bark that is grayish-brown in color. The trees have monoecious flowers, with female flowers being dark red and cylindrical while male flowers are dark yellow, spherical, have strobilus, and are found on axillary branches. Tsuga chinensis have brown, ovate- or oval-shaped cones, and their seeds develop wings when mature, allowing them to be spread by the wind while the cones remain attached to the branches. Large populations of Tsuga chinensis are usually found growing together in foggy, coniferous forests. The trees, which are somewhat hard to identify in direct sunlight, are more easily apparent on foggy and cloudy days via their silhouette. As sunlight rarely shines through the trees' dense shade, seedlings sometimes have a hard time growing.
Chamaecyparis obtusa Japanese cypress, or Hinoki 檜
A species of cypress native to central Japan. It is a slow-growing tree which grows to 35 m tall with a trunk up to 1 m in diameter. The bark is dark red-brown. The leaves are scale-like, 2-4 mm long, blunt tipped (obtuse), green above, and green below with a white stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf. The cones are globose, 8-12 mm diameter, with 8-12 scales arranged in opposite pairs. The related Chamaecyparis pisifera (Sawara Cypress) can be readily distinguished in its having pointed tips to the leaves and smaller cones.
In Japan it is grown for its very high quality timber, where it is used as a material for building palaces, temples, shrines, table tennis blades and baths. The wood is lemon-scented, light pinkish-brown, with a rich, straight grain. Some remaining colonial-era buildings are a testament to its highly rot-resistant properties.
It is also a popular ornamental tree in parks and gardens, both in Japan and elsewhere in temperate climates, including western Europe and parts of North America. A large number of cultivars have been selected for garden planting, including dwarf forms, forms with yellow leaves, and forms with congested foliage. It is also often grown as bonsai.
Hinoki (and Sugi) pollen is a major cause of hay fever in Japan.
Chamaecyparis taiwanensis, Taiwan Cypress 臺灣扁柏
A species of cypress, native to the mountains of Taiwan, where it grows at altitudes of 1300–2800 m. It is a slow-growing coniferous tree growing to 40 m tall with a trunk up to 2 m in diameter. The bark is red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult leaves are scale-like, 0.8–1.5 mm long, with acute tips (unlike the blunt tips of the leaves of the closely related Japanese Chamaecyparis obtusa (Hinoki Cypress), green above, green below with a white stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leaves, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long. The cones are globose, smaller than those of C. obtusa, 7–9 mm diameter, with 6–10 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.
It is most commonly treated as a variety of Chamaecyparis obtusa in European and American texts, but more often accepted as a distinct species by Taiwanese botanists, and is probably better considered distinct. The two taxa differ in ecological requirements, with C. obtusa growing primarily on drier ridgetop sites, while C. taiwanensis occurs on moist soils and with higher rainfall and air humidity.
Endemic to Taiwan, where it grows in the central mountains at moderate to high altitudes of 1000–2900 m. The Formosan Cypress, differs from the Taiwan cypress with leaves which are green below as well as above without a conspicuous white stomatal band, and longer, slenderer ovoid cones 6–10 mm long with 10–16 scales.
It is a slow-growing, but long-lived and ultimately large to very large coniferous tree growing to 55–60 m tall with a trunk up to 7 m in diameter. The bark is red-brown, vertically fissured and with a stringy texture. The foliage is arranged in flat sprays; adult leaves are scale-like, 1–3 mm long, with pointed tips, green both above and below with only an inconspicuous stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf; they are arranged in opposite decussate pairs on the shoots. The juvenile leav es, found on young seedlings, are needle-like, 4–8 mm long, soft and glaucous bluish-green. The cones are ovoid-oblong, 6–12 mm long and 4–8 mm diameter, with 8–16 scales arranged in opposite pairs, maturing in autumn about 7–8 months after pollination.[1]
Cryptomeria japonica (syn.: Cupressus japonica L.f.) 杉
Endemic to Japan, where it is known as Sugi. The tree is often called Japanese Cedar in English, though the tree is not related to the cedars (Cedrus). Cryptomeria is a genus of conifer in the cypress family Cupressaceae formerly belonging to the family Taxodiacea e; it includes only one species.
It is a very large evergreen tree, reaching up to 70 m (230 ft) tall and 4 m (12 ft) trunk diameter, with red-brown bark which peels in vertical strips. The leaves are arranged spirally, needle-like, 0.5–1 cm long; and the seed cones globular, 1–2 cm diameter with about 20–40 scales. It is superficially similar to the related Giant Sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum), from which it can be differentiated by the longer leaves (under 0.5 cm in the Giant Sequoia) and smaller cones (4–6 cm in the Giant Sequoia), and the harder bark on the trunk (thick, soft and spongy in Giant Sequoia).
Sugi (and Hinoki) pollen is a major cause of hayfever in Japan. Sugi is the national tree of Japan, commonly planted around temples and shrines.
Pinus taiwanensis, Taiwan pine 台灣二葉松
Found only in Taiwan, growing at 750-3500 m elevations in habitats ranging from large pure stands to broadleaf-conifer forest to subalpine meadow.A large tree, up to 35 m in height and 80 cm in diameter, the trunk straight, the branches horizontal, the bark fissured into small scales. Leaves 2 in a fascicle, semicircular in cross section, more or less rigid, 8-11 cm long, the margins serrulate, generally with 4 resin ducts. Mature cones oblong-ovoid, 6-7 cm long. Seeds winged, 15-18 mm long including the wing
Native to east Asia, they may reach 50-55 m in height. The general shape of the tree is conical with tiered, horizontal branches that are often somewhat pendulous toward the tips. The softly spined, green to blue-green needle-like leaves that spiral around the stem with an upward arch; they are 2-7 cm long and 3-5 mm broad at the base, and bear two white or greenish-white stomatal bands underneath and sometimes also abo ve. The foliage may turn bronze-tinted in very cold winter weather.
The cones are small and inconspicuous at pollination in late winter, the pollen cones in clusters of 10-30 together, the female cones singly or 2-3 together. The seed cones mature in 7-8 months to 2.5-4.5 cm long, ovoid to globose, with spirally arranged scales; each scale bears 3-5 seeds. They are often proliferous (with a vegetative shoot g
rowing on beyond the tip of the cone) on cultivated laeves
This is a prized timber tree, producing soft, highly durable scented wood. The genus name Cunninghamia honours Dr. James Cunningham, a British doctor. It is grown as an ornamental tree in parks and large gardens, where it typically reaches a height of 15-30 m.
Pinus armandi Armand pine 華山松
