Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mexico. Show all posts

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Pinus pseudostrobus var. apulcensis - False White Pine

Pinus pseudostrobus var. apulcensis: Pinus is the Latin name for P. pinea; pseudostrobus for its similarity to P. strobus; apulcensis, meaning 'from Apulco,' where it was first collected.

Also known as P. oaxacana.

Elegant tree 40-50 meters tall with a round to cylindrical dome. Numerous thin, gently rising branches are clothed with drooping foliage at the tips.


Dark yellow-green to bright green to glaucous blue-green needles are 20-40cm long and bundled in fascicles of 4 or 5.


Seed cones are 10-15 cm long. Seed scales have a long, up-turned claw-like umbo sometimes tipped with a small, fragile prickle.
Note the long (20-30mm) sheaths binding the needles in fascicles.


Smooth gray to reddish brown bark becomes platy with maturity.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Washingtonia robusta - Mexican Fan Palm

Washingtonia robusta: Washingtonia, named for George Washington; robusta, meaning 'robust'.

Compare to the California native W. filifera, the California Fan Palm.

W. robusta is taller than W. filifera (and Phoenix canariensis for that matter), with a more compact head and narrower trunk resembling a living telephone pole. W. robusta is also much more common than W. filifera.

Lovely skyline effect, especially when planted in groups.

Petioles are armed.

Creamy white inconspicuous flowers in April and May.

Shiny black edible drupes enclose a brown, flat, hard-shelled seed.

Saturday, March 20, 2010