Picea jezoensis

Scientific name: Picea jezoensis (P.Siebold & Zuccarini) Carrière 1855

Synonyms:Abies ajanensis (Fisch. ex Carrière) Rupr. & Maxim., Abies jezoensis Siebold & Zucc., Abies microsperma Lindl., Picea ajanensis Fisch. ex Carrière, Picea austromandshurica Silba, Picea kamtchatkensis Lacass., Picea manshurica Nakai, Picea microsperma (Lindl.) Carrière, Picea yezomonii Beissn., Pinus jezoensis (Siebold & Zucc.) Antoine, Pseudotsuga jezoensis (Siebold & Zucc.) W.R.McNab, Tsuga ajanensis (Fisch. ex Carrière) Regel, Veitchia japonica Lindl.

Common names:Yezo spruce, Yeddo spruce, Ezo-matsu (Japanese), El’ ayanskaya (Russian), Kamunbi namu (Korean), Yu lin yun shan (Chinese)

Description

Tree to 40(-50) m tall, with trunk to 1(-1.5) m in diameter. Bark breaking up on large trees into interrupted, narrow, dark grayish brown ridges between deep furrows. Crown broadly conical or egg-shaped, with outstretched, long, horizontal branches bearing short dangling side branches. New branchlets pale yellowish brown, hairless and shiny. Buds 5-8 mm, slightly resinous or not. Needles dark green on the outer side, greenish white to snowy white on the inner side, (0.8-)1.5-2.5(-3) cm long, gently curved forward, flat, with six or seven lines of stomates in each of two stomatal bands on the inner side, pointed or slightly prickly. Pollen cones 15-20 mm long, purplish red. Seed cones (3-)4-7.5(-9) cm long, reddish purple or green before maturity, ripening light brown. Seed scales cutoff diamond-shaped, minutely toothed at the tip, thin and flexible. Seed body 2-3 mm long, the wing 5-6 mm longer.

Northeastern Asia, from southern Kamchatka and the western shores of the Sea of Okhotsk (Russia) south to central Honshū (Japan), Korea, and Nei Mongol (China). Forming pure stands or more commonly mixed with other conifers and some hardwoods in montane and subalpine forest; (50-)300-2,500 m.

Conservation Status

Red List Category & Criteria: Least Concern

(The vast range of this species, and the assessment as Least Concern for its most common and widespread subspecies/variety, determines the category of Least Concern for the species as a whole. This is despite the effects widespread logging and wildfires in many parts of its range)

References

Farjon, A. (2010). A Handbook of the World's Conifers. Koninklijke Brill, Leiden.

Eckenwalder, J.E. (2009) Conifers of the World: The Complete Reference. Timber Press, Portland.

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Cambridge, UK /Gland, Switzerland

Copyright © Aljos Farjon, James E. Eckenwalder, IUCN, Conifers Garden. All rights reserved.

Rootstock: Picea abies