Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis

Pinaceae Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis Franch.

Etymology
Abies refers to ‘to rise’; indicating large trees.
fargesii refers to the plant collector P. G. Farges.
sutchuenensis refers to the Sichuan Province of China.

Colloquial Name
Sichuan fir

Description
These trees can grow up to 40 meters tall, with a straight, column-like trunk that supports a narrow pyramidal or conical crown. The bark is smooth and gray on young trees, flaking in small pieces, but as the tree ages, it becomes rough and fissured, turning brownish-gray.

The main branches are thick, relatively short, and widely spaced. The upper branches spread outward or angle upward, while the lower ones sometimes droop. The smaller twigs are slender but firm, ranging in color from reddish-brown to purplish or mahogany. The newest shoots are smooth or have a fine layer of short hairs. The scars left behind when needles fall off are circular.

The buds are shaped like elongated ovals, measuring 6 to 8 millimeters long and 4 to 5 millimeters wide. They are slightly sticky, and their outer scales are triangular, yellowish-brown, and remain on the tree for several years. The needles are arranged in a spiral and appear crowded in overlapping rows of different lengths. The lower needles spread outward in a comb-like pattern, while those on cone-bearing branches angle upward. They range from 1 to 4.5 centimeters long and 2 to 3.5 millimeters wide. At the base, they are slightly twisted, and their edges curl slightly inward. The upper surface is glossy green, while the underside is a pale whitish-green or bluish shade. The tips of the needles on non-coning branches are unnotched and can be sharply pointed. The undersides have two bands of stomata separated by a central ridge.

The pollen cones are clustered near the tips of branches, emerging from the axils of the needles. They are small, yellow, and have red pollen-producing structures. The seed cones grow upright on very short stalks and have an oval to oblong or cylindrical shape with a rounded or slightly depressed tip. They range from 5 to 9 centimeters long and 3 to 4 centimeters wide. When young, they are bluish-purple, later maturing into shades of purplish or reddish-brown.

The cone scales are wedge-shaped and fan-like, measuring 0.8 to 1.2 centimeters long and 1.5 to 2 centimeters wide at the middle of the cone. Their surface is smooth but has fine hairs, especially on exposed areas. The upper edge is rounded and unbroken, while the base narrows into a short stalk. The bracts inside the cone are obovate with a wedge-shaped base, measuring 1 to 1.5 centimeters long. They slightly extend beyond the cone scales and may have straight or recurved tips.

The seeds are small, oblong, and measure 5 to 6 millimeters long and 3 to 3.5 millimeters wide. They are light brown, and each is attached to a wedge-shaped wing, which is about 6 to 7 millimeters long and 4 to 5 millimeters wide. The wings are light purplish to nearly black.

Subordinate Taxa
There exist 3 subordinate taxa for Abies fargesii:

Distribution

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TDWG Codes
3, 36, CHC, CHC-SC, CHN, CHN-GS

Habitat
The natural habitats for Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis are temperate forests. It is naturally found at an elevation of at least 4000 up to 4000 metres. Other conifers associated with Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis are:

USDA Hardiness zone – 6
Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis is hardy to USDA Zone 6 (Bannister & Neuner, 2001), meaning its frost tolerance lies somewhere in the range of -23.3C (-10F) to -17.8C (0F).

Species Continuity
The population trend for Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis is unknown. There are ongoing threats for Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis and they are listed as follows:

• 2 Overexploitation & Resource Use
  • 2.1 Logging & Wood Harvesting

IUCN Category – LC
According to the IUCN Red List, Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis has been assigned the status of LC(Least Concern). This means that according to the Red List criteria, this species is not qualified as threatened.

Superordinate Taxa
The nearest superordinate taxon for Abies fargesii is Subsect. Delavayianae. The coordinate taxa for Abies fargesii are therefore:

Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis is further placed under Abietoideae. Abies fargesii var. sutchuenensis is also placed under Pinaceae.

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