ISHS Acta Horticulturae 615: IV International Conifer Conference
THE CONIFERS OF CHILE: AN OVERVIEW OF THEIR DISTRIBUTION AND ECOLOGY |
| Authors: | M.F. Garndner, A. Lara |
| Keywords: | Araucariaceae, Cupressaceae, Podocarpaceae, mesic, regeneration, sclerophyllous vegetation, Valdivian rainforests |
| Abstract:
The nine indigenous conifers of Chile are Araucaria araucana (Araucariaceae), Austrocedrus chilensis, Fitzroya cupressoides, Pilgerodendron uviferum (Cupressaceae), and Lepidothamnus fonkii, Podocarpus nubigenus, P. salignus, Prumnopitys andina and Saxegothaea conspicua (Podocarpaceae). In Chile these conifers have a 2,100 km north-south range where the annual precipitation can vary in the north Mediterranean region from less than 1,000 mm to in excess of 4,000 mm in the southern magellanic rainforests. The Chilean conifers include some of the tallest and oldest forest trees; Fitzroya is one of the oldest living plants in the world, estimated to live in excess of 3,600 years. Many of these conifers have a combination of slow growth rates, infrequent seed production and highly prized wood and have therefore found it difficult to survive the non-sustainable exploits of mankind. | |
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