Fitzroya

Fitzroya is a genus in the cypress family Cupressaceae with a single species, Fitzroya cupressoides native to the Andes mountains of southern Chile and adjoining Argentina, where it is an important member of the Valdivian temperate rain forests. The scientific name of the genus honours Robert FitzRoy; common names include Lahuan, Alerce, and Patagonian Cypress.

It is a very large evergreen tree, the largest tree species in South America, growing to 40-60 m tall and up to 5 m trunk diameter. The leaves are in decussate whorls of three, 3-6 mm long (to 8 mm long on seedlings) and 2 mm broad, marked with two white stomatal lines. The cones are globose, 6-8 mm diameter, opening flat to 12 mm across, with nine scales in three whorls of three. Only the central whorl of scales is fertile, bearing 2-3 seeds on each scale; the lower and upper whorls are small and sterile. The seeds are 2-3 mm long, flat, with a wing along each side. The seeds are mature 6-8 months after pollination.

In 1993 a specimen from Chile was dated as 3622 years old. This gives it the third-greatest fully verified age recorded for any living tree, after the Great Basin Bristlecone Pine and the as yet unnamed 9,550 year old spruce tree discovered in Sweden in 2008. Much larger specimens existed in the past before the species was heavily logged in the 19th and 20th centuries; Charles Darwin reported finding a specimen 12.6 m in diameter, which, if accurately measured, would have made it the stoutest tree ever measured anywhere in the world.

Davallia

Davallia is a genus of about 40 species of ferns in the family Davalliaceae. They are epiphytic ferns, with fronds arising from long aerial rhizomes which grow on and over thick bark on trees or on rock crevices.

Some species of... more >>>

Bacopa

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Magnolia Tree and Flower

Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae.

The natural range of Magnolia species is rather scattered and includes eastern North America, Central... more >>>

Callirhoe

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Poppy mallow... more >>>

Fontanesia

Fontanesia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae, usually treated as comprising a single species Fontanesia philliraeoides, though some authors split this into two species (see below). It is native to southern Europe (Sicily),... more >>>