Everyone knows what conifers are, don’t we?
They’re evergreens with needles slightly than leaves. However what about larches? They’re not evergreen.
And cypresses have scale-like leaves, not needles. And let’s not even discuss monkey puzzle timber!
The reply to the query “what are conifers” isn’t so clear.
These vegetation are literally outlined by their methodology of replica, not their foliage. Many species are certainly evergreens with needle-like foliage, however not all.
What all of them have in widespread is that they produce reproductive cones as an alternative of flowers.
I dwell in probably the most conifer-dense areas on this planet, and I’ve developed a deep fascination for these vegetation.
Not solely do a lot of them look lush and inexperienced even throughout the winter, however they want hardly any upkeep in any respect within the backyard.
I’m simply dying to debate much more about conifers, so with out additional ado, right here’s what we’ll be going over:
What Are Conifers?
There’s one attribute that defines these vegetation and it’s not the presence of needles or whether or not or not they’re evergreen.
All of them bear cones with seeds inside. In reality, that’s what the phrase conifer means. It’s Latin for conus, which means cone, and ferre, which means bearing. It’s a cone-bearing plant.
All of them have two sorts of cones: females and males. The male cones are small, gentle, and comprise pollen.
The feminine cones are bigger, woody, and comprise the seeds. In lots of species, the pollen is carried a brief distance by the wind.
Conifers are gymnosperms, which means they’re woody, seed-bearing vegetation. All the about 650 current species inside seven genera are woody perennials which can be both timber or shrubs.
The overwhelming majority have a single predominant trunk.
They are often low-growing and beneath 9 inches tall, like dwarf Japanese juniper (Juniperus procumbens), and over 300 ft tall within the case of coast redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens).
Most choose full solar and considerably dry soil, and all are wind-pollinated.
The leaves are usually needle-like or scale-like, with the needles in both linear or acicular shapes. Most are evergreen, however others are deciduous.
Once we say “evergreen” it doesn’t imply they maintain their needles indefinitely, they simply don’t shed them all of sudden like deciduous varieties do.
As an alternative, they drop a couple of right here and there which can be continually being changed, giving the looks of getting persistent needles that final endlessly.
Many conifers produce sap, additionally known as resin or pitch, which is a pure safety in opposition to pathogens and pests.
Many pests are delay by the perfume of the resin, however they’ll additionally develop into trapped in it in the event that they attempt to feed on the plant.
If considered one of these vegetation is wounded, it sends resin to the world to flood out pests and pathogens which may trigger infestation or an infection.
Some conifers need to entice birds to their cones to assist unfold the seeds. These will usually develop upright cones with quick or non-existent stems.
That enables the birds to simply perch on the department and feed.
Some Examples
The pine (Pinaceae), podocarp (Podocarpaceae), and cypress (Cupressaceae) households make up the biggest conifer households, however there are additionally the Araucariaceae, Sciadopityaceae, Cephalotaxaceae, and Taxaceae households.
All of the needle-laden timber like cedars, Douglas firs, true cypress, firs, junipers, kauri (Agathis), larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews are conifers.
There are deciduous varieties, together with some larches, bald cypress (Taxodium distichum), and daybreak redwoods (Metasequoia spp.).
These will lose their foliage within the fall and develop new leaves within the spring.
In terms of conifers within the backyard, pines, cypress, yews, and junipers are the preferred in North America.
The place Do They Develop Wild?
After the final ice age, many conifer species turned extinct as a result of flowering vegetation, that are higher tailored to the hotter situations of the trendy local weather, took over.
However there are nonetheless a couple of areas the place flowering vegetation haven’t managed to outcompete with conifers.
The Pacific Northwest is one space the place conifers thrive and that’s as a result of evergreen leaves want a local weather with a protracted, delicate rising season.
Additionally they do effectively in areas which have little moisture in the summertime and ample moisture the remainder of the yr. They’ve additionally tailored to develop in poor soil the place flowering timber and shrubs fail to thrive.
You principally discover conifers in colder areas in northern latitudes. The 2 cold-hardiest timber on this planet, the Dahurian larch (Larix gmelinii) and the Siberian larch (L. sibirica) are conifers.
The rarest sort on this planet, the Monterey cypress, comes from a tiny nook of southwest Oregon and northwest California.
There are only a handful native to the Southern Hemisphere. These belong to the Araucaria, Podocarpus, and Agathis genera.
Kind and Replica
Most conifers, at the least of their pure kind, have a conical form with a powerful central chief. This form maximizes the sunshine publicity accessible to the branches and needles.
As talked about, what units conifers aside from flowering vegetation is how they reproduce. These vegetation have petalless flowers on inflorescences that make up the immature cones.
All conifers have male cones that comprise the pollen and feminine cones that maintain the flowers and seeds.
The male cones are usually gentle, with scales that maintain the pollen inside till it’s able to launch.
As soon as it releases, it’s carried on the wind, water, or by animals and there might be a powerful quantity.
Should you’ve ever stepped outdoors to search out the whole lot lined in yellow powder, you’re in all probability pollen from a close-by conifer, like a pine tree (Pinus spp.).
The pollen finds a feminine cone, which is normally gentle when younger, turning into woody when mature and pollinated.
The scales open to permit the pollen to search out the seeds inside, they usually’ll typically exude a little bit of resin that helps the pollen stick. Then, the scales shut again as much as shield the pollinated seed.
Some seeds are winged to allow them to be carried on the wind and others look forward to birds or different hungry animals to eat them and carry them far and broad.
Should you go for a stroll in a coniferous forest within the spring, you’ll doubtless discover the seedlings popping up in every single place.
Most cones are pollinated and drop from the tree in the identical yr, however fairly a couple of take two and even three years to launch the seeds.
You may hear some cones known as “fruits,” similar to these on junipers and yews, however they aren’t technically fruits. They’re cones, they simply have fleshy scales.
Fast Information to Identification
It may be arduous to inform all the varied conifers aside. Though it’s much more difficult than this, you’ll be able to usually decide which kind it’s primarily based on how the needles connect to the stalk.
If the needles wrap across the twig, it’s doubtless both a yew (Taxaceae household) or a cypress (Cupressaceae household).
Needles with a spherical base that go away behind spherical scars once they fall or are torn off are true firs (Abies spp.).
Comfortable needles in clusters of 15 or extra that connect collectively on the base by way of a spur are larches (Larix spp.), whereas 15 or extra stiff needles on a spur are true cedars (Cedrus spp.).
Needles in teams of two, three, or 5 with a papery envelope on the base, it’ll be a pine (Pinaceae household). Scales connected to the stem are junipers (Juniperus spp.).
If the needles connect by way of a small peg perpendicular to the stem, you’re in all probability a spruce (Picea spp.). If there’s a tiny perpendicular stem, it’s doubtless a Douglas fir.
Lastly, if the needle has a little bit of stem that grows parallel to the primary stem, it’s a hemlock (subfamily Abietoideae).
You’ll be able to study extra in our information to conifer identification right here.
Conifers Are So Cool!
I actually assume these vegetation are so cool – they’ve some actually fascinating variations. Wait, now as I’m studying that sentence, I’m realizing that I’m formally a plant nerd.
I can’t be the one licensed conifer nerd. What do you want about these vegetation? That are your favorites? Tell us within the feedback part under!
And in the event you love conifers as a lot as I do, you’ll doubtless need to study extra about them. Add these guides to your studying listing subsequent: