''Cedrus atlantica'', the Atlas cedar, is a species of tree in the pine family Pinaceae, native to the Rif and

Atlas Mountains The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in the Maghreb in North Africa. It separates the Sahara Desert from the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; the name "Atlantic" is derived from the mountain range. It stretches around through Moroc ...

of Morocco ( Middle Atlas, High Atlas), and to the

Tell Atlas The Tell Atlas ( ar, الاطلس التلي, Latn, ar, al-ʾaṭlas al-tlī) is a mountain chain over in length, belonging to the Atlas mountain ranges in North Africa, stretching mainly across northern Algeria, with ends in both north-easter ...

in Algeria.Gaussen, H. (1964). Genre ''Cedrus''. Les Formes Actuelles. ''Trav. Lab. For. Toulouse'' T2 V1 11: 295-320 A majority of the modern sourcesFarjon, A. (1990). ''Pinaceae. Drawings and Descriptions of the Genera''. Koeltz Scientific Books .Farjon, A. (2008). ''A Natural History of Conifers''. Timber Press . treat it as a distinct species ''Cedrus atlantica'', but some sources consider it a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of Lebanon cedar (''C. libani'' subsp. ''atlantica'').

Description

Fully grown, Atlas cedar is a large

coniferous Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extant ...

evergreen tree, (rarely 40 m) tall, with a trunk diameter of . It is very similar in all characters to the other varieties of Lebanon cedar; differences are hard to discern. The mean cone size tends to be somewhat smaller (although recorded to 12 cm, only rarely over 9 cm long, compared to up to 10 cm in ''C. brevifolia'', and 12 cm in ''C. libani''), though with considerable overlap (all can be as short as 6 cm). The ''Cedrus atlantica'' leaf length (10–25 mm) is similar that of ''C. libani'' subsp. ''stenocoma'', on average longer than ''C. brevifolia'' and shorter than ''C. libani'' subsp. ''libani'', but again with considerable overlap.Schwarz, O. (1944). Anatolica. ''Feddes Repertorium'' 54: 26-34.

Ecology

Atlas cedar form forests on mountainsides at , often in pure forests, or mixed with Algerian fir - ''Abies numidica'', '' Juniperus oxycedrus'', holm oak - ''Quercus ilex'', and '' Acer opalus''. These forests can provide habitat for the endangered

Barbary macaque The Barbary macaque (''Macaca sylvanus''), also known as Barbary ape, is a macaque species native to the Atlas Mountains of Algeria, Libya, Tunisia and Morocco, along with a small introduced population in Gibraltar. It is the type species of the ...

(''Macaca sylvanus''), a primate that had a

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

ally much wider distribution in northern Morocco and Algeria. Currently, Morocco has the highest total surface of Atlas cedar in the world, and it forms vast forests in the humid zones of the country, around the Middle-Atlas range, the oriental and Northern High-Atlas range, and in the Western and Central Rif mountain range. The current total area is around 163,000 hectares, of which around 115,000 hectares (80%) are situated in the Middle-Atlas mountains. The species is in danger from human use, wood harvesting and fires. Data that go back to 1927 show higher number of Atlas cedars (more than 150,000 hectares) in the Middle-Atlas mountains only. The Rif mountains had one of the largest cedar forests in the past, but forests nowadays are much smaller, 15% of the total cedar forests in Morocco. Recently massive reforestation campaigns have taken place in the region of Ifrane Province. In Algeria, the Atlas cedar has been in significant decline. According to data from 1966 the species inhabited 23,000 hectares, forming forests around the Djurdjura Mountains in Kabylie and Aures Mountains. However, it is expected that it currently inhabits fewer than 15,000 hectares owing to extensive fires and human use.

Cultivation and uses

Landscape

''C. atlantica'' is common in cultivation as an

ornamental tree Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

in temperate climates. In garden settings, often the glaucous forms are planted as ornamental trees, distinguished as the Glauca group, a

cultivar group A Group (previously cultivar-groupInternational Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants, 4th edition (1969), 5th edition (1980) and 6th edition (1995)) is a formal category in the ''International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants'' ('' ...

. Also, fastigiate, pendulous, and golden-leaf forms are in cultivation. The Atlas cedar is useful in cultivation because it is more tolerant of dry and hot conditions than most conifers. Many of the cultivated trees have glaucous (bluish) foliage, more downy shoots, and can have more leaves in each whorl; young trees in cultivation often have more ascending branches than many cultivated ''C. atlantica'' specimens.Walters, W. M. (1986). ''European Garden Flora'' Vol 1. . In the UK the following

cultivars A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...

have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

(confirmed 2017): *’Aurea' (golden Atlas cedar) *’Glauca' (Glauca Group) *’Glauca Pendula' (Glauca Group) An Atlas cedar is planted at the White House

South Lawn The South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., is directly south of the house and is bordered on the east by East Executive Drive and the Treasury Building, on the west by West Executive Drive and the Old Executive Office Building, and ...

in Washington, DC. President Carter ordered a tree house built within the cedar for his daughter Amy. The wooden structure was designed by the President himself, and is self-supporting so as not to cause damage to the tree.

Forestry

Cedar plantations, mainly with ''C. atlantica'', have been established in southern France for timber production.

References

External links

uconn.edu: ''Cedrus atlantica'' profile and galleryGymnosperm Database - ''Cedrus atlantica'' (Atlas cedar) descriptionPFAF Plant Database: ''Cedrus atlantica'' Atlas deodar cedar''Cedrus atlantica''
- genetic conservation units European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN) {{Taxonbar, from=Q623489 atlantica Trees of Algeria Trees of Morocco Flora of North Africa ~ Endangered flora of Africa Garden plants of Africa Plants used in bonsai Ornamental trees Drought-tolerant trees Taxa named by Élie-Abel Carrière