Huon pine

''Lagarostrobos franklinii'' is a species of conifer native to the wet southwestern corner of Tasmania, Australia. It is often known as the Huon pine or Macquarie pine, although it is actually a podocarp (Podocarpaceae), not a true pine (Pinaceae). It is the sole species in the genus ''Lagarostrobos''; one other species ''L. colensoi'' (endemic to New Zealand) formerly included has been transferred to a new genus ''Manoao''. The genus was also formerly included in a broader circumscription of the genus ''Dacrydium''.

In molecular phylogenetic analyses ''Lagorostrobos'' was found to be related to '' Parasitaxus'' (a parasitic and monotypic genus from New Caledonia) and ''Manoao'', but their exact relationships are unresolved.

The wood is highly prized for its golden yellow colour, fine grain, and natural oils that resist rotting. The chemical giving the timber its unique smell and preservative qualities is methyl eugenol.

It has been planted in the grounds of Crathes Castle, Aberdeenshire, Scotland and has done well. Two healthy specimens can also be found at Torosay Castle, Isle of Mull.

Description

The Huon pine is a slow-growing, but long-lived tree; some living specimens of this tree are in excess of 2,000 years old. It grows to tall, exceptionally reaching , with arching branches and pendulous branchlets. The leaves are spirally arranged, very small and scale-like, long, covering the shoots completely. It is dioecious, with male ( pollen) and female (seed) cones on separate plants. The male cones are yellow, long and broad. The mature seed cones are highly modified, berry-like, with 5 to 10 lax, open scales which mature in six-to-eight months, with one seed long on each scale. Unlike the closely related New Zealand genus ''Manoao'', the scales do not become fleshy and are water-dispersed, not bird-dispersed.

Based on herbarium specimens the extent of occurrence is estimated to be around with an estimated area of occupancy of . The actual area of occupancy is estimated to range from (Gibson 1991) to as much as (Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania 2006).

Age

Huon pines are some of the oldest living organisms on the Earth.

A stand of trees in excess of 10,500 years old was found in 1955 in western Tasmania on Mount Read. Each of the trees in this stand is a genetically identical male that has reproduced vegetatively. Although no single tree in this stand is of that age, the stand itself as a single organism has existed that long.

Individual trees in the clonal patch have been listed as having ages of 2,000 or even to 3,000 years old.

Because of the long life of individual trees, tree rings from Huon Pine have been used for dendrochronology to establish a record of climate variation.Cook, E.R., Francey, R.J., Buckley, B.M. and D'Arrigo, R.D.
"Recent increases in Tasmanian Huon pine ring widths from a subalpine stand: natural climate variability, CO2 fertilisation, or greenhouse warming?"
''Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania, vol. 130''(2), 1996, pp. 65-72. ISSN 0080-4703. Retrieved 2018-03-22.

Conservation

An estimated 15% of its habitat has been lost through inundation for hydroelectric schemes and to fire over the past 100 years or so. Extensive logging in the past has removed nearly all large trees, but there is regrowth nearly everywhere. One stand of the species has been made available for access to craft wood from dead and downed timber under a strict licensing system. It is illegal to cut living trees.

See also

* List of superlative trees

References

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Endemic flora of Tasmania
Trees of Australia
Pinales of Australia
Trees of mild maritime climate
Ornamental trees
Conservation dependent flora of Australia
Tasmanian forests

Monotypic conifer genera
Podocarpaceae genera
Podocarpaceae