Abies Miller

1. Abies Miller View in CoL 2

Evergreen trees with regularly whorled branches. Short shoots absent. Leaves spirally arranged, linear, flattened, grooved above, rarely 4-sided; resin-canals 2, longitudinal, either marginal (in the hypodermis), or median (in the mesophyll); leaf-scars circular, not at all projecting. Male flowers in leaf-axils on under surface of twigs. Cones ripening in the first year, erect, cylindrical to ovoid; scales falling from the persistent axis when ripe.

The descriptions of twigs and leaves apply only to vegetative, lateral twigs and to the leaves on them.

In addition to the species described below, A. balsamea Miller , Gard. Diet. ed. 8, no. 3 (1768), from N.E. North America, and A. homolepis Siebold & Zucc. , FI. Jap. 2: 17 (1842) from Japan, are occasionally grown on a small scale in experimental plantations. Both resemble A. alba in the bilateral arrangement of leaves on the twigs: A. homolepis may be distinguished by the glabrous young twigs and resinous buds; A. balsameaiyy the resinous buds, sparsely pubescent young twigs and median resin-canals.

Most of the species described, and several others, are cultivated for ornament in parks and gardens.

Literature: J. Mattfeld, Mitt. Deutsch. Dendr. Ges. (Jahrb.) 1925: 1-37 (1925). J. do Amaral Franco, Abetos. Lisboa. 1950. 1 Leaves rigid, acute

2 Leaves 15-35 mm; resin-canals marginal; bracts exserted from cone 8. cephalonica 2 Leaves 10-15 mm; resin-canals median; bracts included in cone 9. pinsapo 1 Leavesflexible,emarginateorobtuse 3 Leaves glaucous above (with several longitudinal rows of stomata); twigs with reddish pubescence 4 Twigs brown; resin-canals marginal; cones 12-20 cm; bracts long-exserted from cone, deflexed 1. procera 4 Twigs ashy-grey; resin-canals median; cones 5-10 cm; bracts included in cone 3. lasiocarpa 3 Leavesdarkorbrightgreenabove(withlongitudinalrowsof stomata only at apex, or absent); twigs with whitish or brownish, but not reddish pubescence, or glabrescent 5 Leaves less than 15 mm (Sicilia) 7. nebrodensis 5 Leaves 15 mm or more 6 Buds resinous, small; cones 5-10 cm; bracts included in cone 7 Twigs silvery-grey; leaves 1 -1-3 mm wide; resin-canals median 4. sibirica 7 Twigs olive-green; leaves 1 - 5-2- 5 mm wide; resin-canals marginal 2. grandis 6 Buds not resinous; cones 10-20 cm; bracts exserted from cone 8 Crown compact; twigs sparsely pubescent; each stomatiferous band on under surface of leaf composed of 8-10

rows of stomata; cones 4-5 cm wide 5. nordmanniana 8 Crown wide; twigs densely pubescent; each stomatiferous band on the under surface of leaves composed of 6-8

rows of stomata; cones 3-4 cm wide 6. alba