''Podocarpus elongatus'', the Breede River yellowwood, is a species of
conifer
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 ext ...
in the family
Podocarpaceae
Podocarpaceae is a large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, known in English as podocarps, comprising about 156 species of evergreen trees and shrubs.James E. Eckenwalder. 2009. ''Conifers of the World''. Portland, Oregon: Timber P ...
. In contrast to other yellowwood species of southern Africa, ''Podocarpus elongatus'' often resembles an enormous, round, multi-stemmed bush in its
habit
A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously. . The Breede River yellowwood is a protected tree in South Africa.
Description
It can be distinguished from the other yellowwood species of Southern Africa by its relatively elongated, grey-blue leaves (hence its species name ''"elongatus"''), and by its round, bushy shape. Note however, that ''
Podocarpus henkelii
''Podocarpus henkelii'' (Henkel's yellowwood, af, Henkel-se-Geelhout, xh, Umsonti, zu, Umsonti) is a South African species of conifer in the family Podocarpaceae. It is grown ornamentally in gardens for its strikingly neat, attractive form an ...
'' was not described until after the name ''Podocarpus elongatus'' was established, and its leaves are decidedly longer, which might lead to some confusion. ''Podocarpus elongatus'' generally grows about as wide as it is tall, and its foliage reaches very low, roughly resembling a hut in habit.
Range and habit
It occurs only in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
, where it is restricted to the
Breede River valley
Breede River Valley is a region of Western Cape Province, South Africa known for being the largest fruit and wine producing valley in the Western Cape, as well as South Africa's leading race-horse breeding area. It is part of the Boland borderin ...
in the
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 202 ...
and its range extends as far north as the
Cedarberg mountains. It typically grows along rivers and on rocky outcrops in
fynbos
Fynbos (; meaning fine plants) is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean clim ...
vegetation. This is the only South African
yellowwood species that
coppice
Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management which exploits the capacity of many species of trees to put out new shoots from their stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, which is called a copse, young tree stems are repeate ...
s when the trunk is damaged. It is a riverine species, and its ability to coppice is important to its survival in the event of its being levelled by floods or bushfires.
As a garden tree it is sometimes grown as an ornamental feature and its fruit attracts birds. Climatically it is hardier than other yellowwood species in surrounding regions.
Gallery
Podocarpus elongatus - foliage.JPG,
Podocarpus elongatus, naalde, Manie van der Schijff BT, a.jpg,
Podocarpus elongatus Groot Winterhoek fruits 2.jpg,
Podocarpus elongatus Groot Winterhoek fruit.jpg,
See also
*
List of Southern African indigenous trees
This is a list of Southern African trees, shrubs, suffrutices, geoxyles and lianes, and is intended to cover Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The notion of 'indigenous' is of ...
References
External links
PlantZAfrica.com site by SANBIImages on iSpot
elongatus
Least concern plants
Afromontane flora
Trees of South Africa
Protected trees of South Africa
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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