''Pinus dalatensis'', also known as Vietnamese white pine or Dalat pine,
is a species of
pine
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to
Indochina
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
. In
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
it grows in the mountains of the central and south-central parts of the country at elevations of .
[Businský, R. (1999). Study of ''Pinus dalatensis'' Ferré and of the enigmatic "Pin du Moyen Annam". ''Candollea'' 54: 125-143.][Farjon, A. (2005). ''Pines''. Brill .] Only recently confirmed from
Laos
Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, the population located within the
Nakai-Nam Theun Biodiversity Conservation Area
Nakai-Nam Theun National Park in Nakai District, Khammouane Province, Laos, is one of the last remaining wildernesses in Southeast Asia. Nakai-Nam Theun covers approximately 4,270 km2 of the Annamite Range and the adjacent Nakai Plateau in ...
is the largest, at the lowest elevation, and the northernmost of the known populations of ''P. dalatensis''.
Description
''Pinus dalatensis'' is a medium-sized
evergreen
In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...
tree growing to tall. It is a member of the
white pine
''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...
group, ''
Pinus
A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
'' subgenus ''
Strobus
''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been furth ...
'', and like all members of that group, the
leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
('needles') are in fascicles (bundles) of five, with a deciduous sheath. The needles are finely serrated, and (3-)5–14 cm long.
The
cones
A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex.
A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines conn ...
are slender, long and broad (closed), opening to broad; the scales are thin and flexible. The seeds are small, long, and have a long slender wing long. It is most closely related to the
blue pine
''Pinus wallichiana'' is a coniferous evergreen tree native to the Himalaya, Karakoram and Hindu Kush mountains, from eastern Afghanistan east across northern Pakistan and north west India to Yunnan in southwest China. It grows in mountain val ...
''Pinus wallichiana'' from the
Himalaya
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
.
[
]
Subspecies
It is divided into two 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 ...
:[
*''Pinus dalatensis'' subsp. ''dalatensis''. ]Da Lat
Da Lat (also written as Dalat, vi, Đà Lạt; ), is the capital of Lâm Đồng Province and the largest city of the Central Highlands region in Vietnam. The city is located above sea level on the Langbian Plateau. Da Lat is one of the mos ...
region, between 11°50'N and 12°30'N. Cones 6–17 cm long.
*''Pinus dalatensis'' subsp. ''procera'' Businský. Central Vietnam, between 15°00'N and 16°20'N. Cones 13–23 cm long.
References
Further reading
*
External links
Conifers Around the World: Pinus dalatensis - THÔNG ĐÀ LẠT
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2673640
dalatensis
Trees of Laos
Trees of Vietnam
Near threatened flora of Asia