Japanese Umbrella Pine
Sciadopitys verticillata · Sciadopityaceae · 금송
How to spot it
The most distinctive feature is the arrangement of 20 to 30 long needles in umbrella-like whorls at each node.
Look
- Leaves
- Two kinds of leaves: small scale leaves and thick, flat, fleshy linear needles 7.5 to 12.5 cm long; 20 to 30 glossy dark green needles form umbrella-spoke whorls. The needle underside has two white stomatal lines.
- Flowers
- In May to June, reddish to yellow-green male cones and pale green female cones appear and are inconspicuous.
- Fruit
- Ovoid cones 5 to 10 cm long stand upright; green in the first year, ripening brown the next.
- Bark
- Reddish brown, thick, soft and fibrous, peeling in strips or plates.
Where it grows
- Native to
- Native to Japan, growing in mountain forests at about 460 to 980 m (1,500 to 3,200 ft).