''Embothrium'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of two to eight species (depending on taxonomic interpretation) in the plant family Proteaceae, native to southern

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, in

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

and adjacent western

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

; the genus occurs as far south as Tierra del Fuego. Common names include Chilean firebush in English, notro in Argentina, ciruelillo, fosforito or notro chileno in Chilean Spanish. They are large

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s or

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

s growing to 10–20 m tall with a trunk up to 70 cm diameter. ''E. coccineum'' and perhaps others, is also highly prone to suckering and unmanaged plants often form dense groves of many suckering shoots. The

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

, occasionally

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

in cold areas, 5–12 cm long and 2–4 cm broad. The

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s are produced in dense bunches, brilliant red (rarely white or yellow), tubular, 2.5-4.5 cm long, split into four lobes near the apex which reflex to expose the stamens and style.

Systematics

One or possibly two extant species are recognised. Two further species, ?''E. precoccineum'' and ?''E. pregrandiflorum'', have been described from the Ventana Formation (Middle Eocene) from Patagonia, although their placement in ''Embothrium'' is uncertain as they are insufficiently known.

Species

*''

Embothrium coccineum ''Embothrium coccineum'', Chilean firetree or Chilean firebush, commonly known in Chile and Argentina as ''notro'', ''ciruelillo'' and ''fósforo'' is a small evergreen tree in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. It grows in the temperate for ...

'' J. R. Forst. & G. Forst. Chile, Argentina. *'' Embothrium lanceolatum'' Ruiz & Pav. (syn. ''E. coccineum'' var. ''lanceolatum'' (Ruiz & Pav.) O.Kuntze). Chile, Argentina; doubtfully distinct from ''E. coccineum''. *†'' Embothrium nebulosum'' Stover & Partridge (previously ''Granodiporites nebulosus'') Tertiary, southeastern Australia *†'' Embothrium precoccineum'' Berry (Middle Eocene fossils from the Ventana Formation, near Río Pichileufú, Río Negro Province, Argentina) *†'' Embothrium pregrandiflorum'' Berry (Middle Eocene fossils from the Ventana Formation near Río Pichileufú, Río Negro Province, Argentina)

Classification

Together with '' Telopea'', '' Oreocallis'' and '' Alloxylon'', ''Embothrium'' makes up a small group of terminal often red-flowering showy plants scattered around the southern edges of the Pacific Rim. Known as the Embothriinae, this is an ancient group with roots in the mid

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

, when

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

and South America were linked by land. Almost all these species have red terminal flowers, and hence the subtribe's origin and floral appearance must predate the splitting of Gondwana into Australia, Antarctica, and South America over 60 million years ago.

Pollinators

The prominent position and striking colour of many species within the subtribe both in Australia and South America strongly suggest they are adapted to pollination by birds, and have been for over 60 million years. In Argentine Patagonia, ''E. coccineum'' is pollinated by hummingbirds ( green-backed firecrown) and insects ( tangle-veined flies and sweat bees).Devoto, M., N. H. Montaldo & D. Medan, 2006. Mixed hummingbird: Long-proboscid-fly pollination in ‘ornithophilous’ ''Embothrium coccineum'' (Proteaceae) along a rainfall gradient in Patagonia, Argentina. ''Austral Ecology'', 31: 512–519

Cultivation and uses

''Embothrium coccineum'' is grown as an

ornamental plant 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 th ...

for its vivid red flowers. It is only successful in

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

s, which away from its native area includes western

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

(mainly the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

and the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...

), the coast of the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, and

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

s. Image:EmbothriumBark.jpg, Embothrium Bark Image:EmbothriumLeaves.jpg, Embothrium leaves Image:EmbothriumFlowers w.jpg, Embothrium flowers

References

External links

Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Embothrium''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3355974 Embothrieae Proteaceae genera Flora of southern South America Trees of Chile Trees of Argentina