Common Names
Formosan juniper, prickly cypress (3).Taxonomic notes
Syn: J. taxifoia [sic; I suspect he means taxifolia] Parl. not Hook. Arn.; J. oblonga pendula Knight et Perry (3); J. chekiangensis Nakai 1938 (4). One variety, concolor Hayata (2).Description
"A tree up to 15 (25) m high, often with several stems. Bark brown, fibrous, exfoliating in strips. Crown conical. Branches spreading or directed upwards. Branchlets pendulous. Foliage needle-like, in whorls of 3, 12-15 mm long, about 2 mm wide, with 2 white stomata bands above. Fruit orange to dark red-brown, globose to broadly ovate, 8 mm across, with 3 furrows at the top, in each fruit 3 oblong-ovate, triangular seeds" (3).Range
China (1), Taiwan: As low as 1900, usually 2500-3600 m. Yushania forest, mixed conifer-broadleeaf forest, and above treeline. 120°44'41"E to 121°38'21"E, by 22°36'41"N to 24°28'03"N. Includes Sheipa, Taroko and Yushan National Parks (2). Var. concolor collected from Taiwan, "Hualien Xian: Taroko National Park: Yenhai Forest Road. Exposed windy mountain summit, facing a valley. Overall vegetation: dwarf shrubs and herbs. Plants sprawling. Elevation:1070-1130 m" (2).Big Tree
Oldest
Dendrochronology
Ethnobotany
Observations
Shei-Pa, Taroko and Yushan National Parks look like good places to see it.Remarks
Citations
(1) Silba 1986.(2) Botanical Inventory Of Taiwan.
(3) Vidakovic 1991.
(4) TROPICOS - Flora of China Checklist http://mobot.mobot.org/cgi-bin/search_pick. Accessed 2-Nov-1998.
[Juniperus] [Cupressaceae] [home]
This page is from the Gymnosperm Database
URL: http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/2285/cu/ju/formosana.htm
Edited by Christopher J. Earle
E-mail:earlecj@earthlink.net
Last modified on 21-Dec-98