cedar

Cedar most correctly refers to those trees belonging to the Genus Cedrus in the coniferous plant family Pinaceae, most closely related to the Firs (Abies). They are native to the mountains of the western Himalaya and the Mediterranean region, occurring at altitudes of 1,500-3200m in the Himalaya and 1,000-2,200m in the Mediterranean.

They are trees up to 40-50m tall with spicy-resinous scented wood; thick ridged or square-cracked bark; evergreen needle-like leaves 5-25mm long, arranged singly in an open spiral phyllotaxis on long shoots, and in dense spiral clusters on short shoots; and barrel-shaped cones 6-12cm long which as in Abies disintegrate at maturity to release the winged seeds. Cone maturation takes one year, with pollination in September-October and the seed mature the same time a year later.

There are five taxa of Cedrus, assigned according to taxonomic opinion to two to four different species:

• Deodar Cedar Cedrus deodara. Western Himalaya.
• Lebanon Cedar or Cedar of Lebanon Cedrus libani var. libani. Mountains of Lebanon, western Syria and south-central Turkey.
  • Turkish Cedar Cedrus libani var. stenocoma Mountains of southwest Turkey.
  • Cyprus Cedar Cedrus libani var. brevifolia or Cedrus brevifolia. Mountains of Cyprus.
  • Atlas Cedar Cedrus libani var. atlantica or Cedrus atlantica. Atlas mountains in Morocco & Algeria.

Cedars are very popular ornamental trees, widely used in horticulture in temperate climates where winter temperatures do not fall below about -25°C (the Turkish cedar is slightly hardier, to -30°C or just below). They are also grown for their scented wood, most famously used in the construction of King Solomon's temple in Jerusalem.