Tetraclinis

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Tetraclinis
Tetraclinis articulata.JPG
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Cupressales
Family: Cupressaceae
Subfamily: Cupressoideae
Genus: Tetraclinis
Mast.
Species:
T. articulata
Binomial name
Tetraclinis articulata
Tetraclinis articulata range.svg
Natural range
Synonyms
  • Callitris quadrivalvisRich. & A.Rich.
  • Thuja articulataVahl
Tetraclinis forest at Al Hoceima National Park Alhucemas (9).JPG
Tetraclinis forest at Al Hoceima National Park

Tetraclinis (also called arar, [2] araar [3] or Sictus tree) is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the cypress family Cupressaceae, containing only one species, Tetraclinis articulata, also known as Thuja articulata, [4] sandarac, sandarac tree [5] or Barbary thuja, [6] endemic to the western Mediterranean region.

Contents

Distribution and habitat

It is native to northwestern Africa in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, with two small outlying populations on Malta, and near Cartagena in southeast Spain in Europe. It grows at relatively low altitudes in a hot, dry subtropical Mediterranean climate. [7]

Taxonomy

Its closest relatives are Platycladus, Microbiota , and Calocedrus , with the closest resemblance to the latter. In older texts, it was sometimes treated in Thuja or Callitris , but it is less closely related to those genera. [7]

Description

Tetraclinis cones at Al Hoceima National Park Alhucemas (11).JPG
Tetraclinis cones at Al Hoceima National Park

It is a small, slow-growing tree, to 6–15 m (rarely 20 m) tall and 0.5 m (rarely 1 m) trunk diameter, often with two or more trunks from the base. The foliage forms in open sprays with scale-like leaves 1–8 mm long and 1–1.5 mm broad; the leaves are arranged in opposite decussate pairs, with the successive pairs closely then distantly spaced, so forming apparent whorls of four. The cones are 10–15 mm long, green ripening brown in about 8 months from pollination, and have four thick scales arranged in two opposite pairs. The seeds are 5–7 mm long and 2 mm broad, with a 3–4 mm broad papery wing on each side. [7] [8]

It is one of only a small number of conifers able to coppice (regrow by sprouting from stumps), an adaptation to survive wildfire and moderate levels of browsing by animals. Old trees that have sprouted repeatedly over a long period form large burls at the base, known as lupias. [7]

Uses and symbolism

It is the national tree of Malta, where it is known as għargħar (derived from the Arabic عَرْعَرʿarʿar). It is now being used locally in afforestation projects.[ citation needed ]

The resin, known as sandarac, is used to make varnish and lacquer; it is particularly valued for preserving paintings.

The wood, known as thuya wood, [9] citron wood, [4] and alerce, [10] and historically also known as thyine wood, is used for decorative woodwork, particularly wood from burls at the base of the trunk. It has been used thus since antiquity (Ancient Greek : θύον, [11] [12] Latin : citrus [13] ), and was used to make valuable furniture in the time of the Roman Empire. [14] The market in Morocco is unsustainable, focusing as it does on the burl, and has resulted in mass deforestation of the species. The species is also threatened by overgrazing, which can kill the coppice regrowth before it gets tall enough to be out of the reach of livestock. [7]

Cultivation

The species is cultivated to be grown as an ornamental tree, valued in hot, dry climates. It is also pruned in a hedge form, for privacy and security. [8] The plant can be trained for use as bonsai specimens.

Fossil record

A related extinct species, Tetraclinis salicornioides, has leaf and cone fossils of Messinian age (ca. 5.7 Ma) that have been uncovered in Monte Tondo and Borgo Tossignano, northern Apennines, Italy. [15]

Immature cones.jpg

Related Research Articles

<i>Cedrus</i> Genus of plants (coniferous trees)

Cedrus, with the common English name cedar, is a genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae. They are native to the mountains of the western Himalayas and the Mediterranean region, occurring at altitudes of 1,500–3,200 m (4,900–10,500 ft) in the Himalayas and 1,000–2,200 m (3,300–7,200 ft) in the Mediterranean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thyine wood</span> 15th-century English name for Tetraclinis articulata

Thyine wood is a 15th-century English name for a wood from the tree known botanically as Tetraclinis articulata. The name is derived from the Greek word thuon, "fragrant wood," or possibly thuein, “to sacrifice”, and it was so called because it was burnt in sacrifices, on account of its fragrance.

<i>Thuja</i> Genus of conifers

Thuja is a genus of coniferous tree or shrub in the Cupressaceae. There are five species in the genus, two native to North America and three native to eastern Asia. The genus is monophyletic and sister to Thujopsis. Members are commonly known as arborvitaes, thujas or cedars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lignotuber</span> Swelling of the root which protects against fire and other hazards

A lignotuber is a woody swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem, such as by fire. Other woody plants may develop basal burls as a similar survival strategy, often as a response to coppicing or other environmental stressors. However, lignotubers are specifically part of the normal course of development of the plants that possess them, and often develop early on in growth. The crown contains buds from which new stems may sprout, as well as stores of starch that can support a period of growth in the absence of photosynthesis. The term "lignotuber" was coined in 1924 by Australian botanist Leslie R. Kerr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cupressaceae</span> Cypress family of conifers

Cupressaceae or the cypress family is a family of conifers. The family includes 27–30 genera, which include the junipers and redwoods, with about 130–140 species in total. They are monoecious, subdioecious or (rarely) dioecious trees and shrubs up to 116 m (381 ft) tall. The bark of mature trees is commonly orange- to red-brown and of stringy texture, often flaking or peeling in vertical strips, but smooth, scaly or hard and square-cracked in some species.

<i>Thuja plicata</i> Species of conifer

Thuja plicata is a large evergreen coniferous tree in the family Cupressaceae, native to the Pacific Northwest of North America. Its common name is western redcedar in the U.S. or western red cedar in the UK, and it is also called pacific red cedar, giant arborvitae, western arborvitae, just cedar, giant cedar, or shinglewood. It is not a true cedar of the genus Cedrus. T. plicata is the largest species in the genus Thuja, growing up to 70 metres (230 ft) tall and 7 m (23 ft) in diameter. It mostly grows in areas that experience a mild climate with plentiful rainfall, although it is sometimes present in drier areas on sites where water is available year-round, such as wet valley bottoms and mountain streamsides. The species is shade-tolerant and able to establish in forest understories and is thus considered a climax species. It is a very long-lived tree, with some specimens reaching ages of well over 1,000 years.

<i>Platycladus</i> Genus of conifers

Platycladus is a monotypic genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the cypress family Cupressaceae, containing only one species, Platycladus orientalis, also known as Chinese thuja, Oriental arborvitae, Chinese arborvitae, biota or Oriental thuja. It is native to northeastern parts of East Asia and North Asia, but is also now naturalised as an introduced species in other regions of the Asian continent.

<i>Fitzroya</i> Species of plant

Fitzroya is a monotypic genus in the cypress family. The single living species, Fitzroya cupressoides, is a tall, long-lived conifer native to the Andes mountains and coastal regions of southern Chile, and only to the Argentine Andes, where it is an important member of the Valdivian temperate forests. Common names include alerce, lahuén, and Patagonian cypress. The genus was named in honour of Robert FitzRoy.

<i>Thujopsis</i> Genus of conifers

Thujopsis is a genus of conifers in the cypress family (Cupressaceae), the sole member of which is Thujopsis dolabrata. It is endemic to Japan, where it is known as asunaro (あすなろ). It is similar to the closely related genus Thuja (arborvitae), differing in its broader, thicker leaves and cones.

<i>Thuja standishii</i> Species of conifer

Thuja standishii is a species of thuja, an evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae. It is native to southern Japan, where it occurs on the islands of Honshū and Shikoku. It is a medium-sized tree, reaching 20–35 m tall and with a trunk up to 1 m diameter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mediterranean basin</span> Region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate

In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin, also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea, is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and warm to hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation. It was a very important part of Mediterranean civilizations.

<i>Juniperus thurifera</i> Species of conifer

Juniperus thurifera is a species of juniper native to the mountains of the western Mediterranean region, from southern France across eastern and central Spain to Morocco and locally in northern Algeria.

Thuja sutchuenensis, the Sichuan thuja, is a species of Thuja, an evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae. It is native to China, where it is an endangered local endemic in Chengkou County, on the southern slope of the Daba Mountains.

<i>Widdringtonia nodiflora</i> Species of conifer

Widdringtonia nodiflora is a species of Widdringtonia native to Southern Africa. It usually grows at high altitudes, typically among rocks on mountainsides. Its foliage and wood are highly flammable while its natural habitat is prone to fire. To compensate, the species will coppice from its roots after being burnt down.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mediterranean woodlands and forests</span> Ecoregion in Northern Africa

The Mediterranean woodlands and forests is an ecoregion in the coastal plains, hills, and mountains bordering the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean in North Africa. It has a Mediterranean climate, and is in the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thujaplicin</span> Chemical compound

Thujaplicin is any of three isomeric tropolone-related natural products that have been isolated from the softwoods of the trees of Cupressaceae family. These compounds are known for their antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidant properties. They were the first natural tropolones to be made synthetically.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hinokitiol</span> Chemical compound

Hinokitiol (β-thujaplicin) is a natural monoterpenoid found in the wood of trees in the family Cupressaceae. It is a tropolone derivative and one of the thujaplicins. Hinokitiol is used in oral and skin care products, and is a food additive used in Japan.

T. articulata may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southeastern Iberian shrubs and woodlands</span>

The Southeastern Iberian shrubs and woodlands is a Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregion in southwestern Europe. It lies in southeastern coastal Spain, along the Mediterranean Sea.

Bratus is the name of a tree Pliny the Elder described in his Naturalis Historia:

Book 12, chapt. 39 —THE TREE CALLED BRATUS.

Hence it is, that they import from the country of the Elymæi the wood of a tree called bratus, which is similar in appearance to a spreading cypress. Its branches are of a whitish colour, and the wood, while burning, emits a pleasant odour; it is highly spoken of by Claudius Cæsar, in his History, for its marvellous properties. He states that the Parthians sprinkle the leaves of it in their drink, that its smell closely resembles that of the cedar, and that the smoke of it is efficacious in counteracting the effects of smoke emitted by other wood. This tree grows in the countries that lie beyond the Pasitigris, in the territory of the city of Sittaca, upon Mount Zagrus.

References

  1. Sánchez Gómez, P.; Stevens, D.; Fennane, M.; Gardner, M.; Thomas, P. (2011). "Tetraclinis articulata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2011: e.T30318A9534227. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T30318A9534227.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. "Tetraclinis articulata". The Gymnosperm Database. Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  3. but it is ambiguous Arabic name also given to Juniperus phoenicea
  4. 1 2 Memidex: sandarac (wood) Retrieved 2012-05-16
  5. Collins: sandarac and sandarac tree Retrieved 2012-05-16
  6. Jacques Blondel & James Aronson: Biology and Wildlife of the Mediterranean Region, Oxford University Press 1999 Retrieved 2012-05-16
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Farjon, A. (2005). Monograph of Cupressaceae and Sciadopitys. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. ISBN   1-84246-068-4
  8. 1 2 Rushforth, K. (1999). Trees of Britain and Europe. Collins ISBN   0-00-220013-9.
  9. Arc-genesis: Thuya Wood Archived 2011-08-08 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2012-05-16
  10. "Definition of ALERCE".
  11. Liddell & Scott. "θύον". A Greek-English Lexicon via Logeion.
  12. Beekes, Robert S. P. (2009). "θύον". Etymological Dictionary of Greek . Brill. p. 565.
  13. de Vaan, Michiel (2008). "citrus". Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages . Brill. p. 116.
  14. Lewis & Short. "citrus". A Latin Dictionary via Logeion.
  15. Palaeoenvironmental analysis of the Messinian macrofossil floras of Tossignano and Monte Tondo (Vena del Gesso Basin, Romagna Apennines, northern Italy) - Vasilis Teodoridis, Zlatko Kvacek, Marco Sami and Edoardo Martinetto - December 2015 DOI: 10.14446/AMNP.2015.249.