Fir

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For the three letter acronym, see FIR.
Abies - firs
Fossil range: 49–0 Ma
1
Korean Fir (Abies koreana) cone and foliage
Korean Fir (Abies koreana) cone and foliage
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Abies
Mill.
Species

See text
Abies grandis foliage
Intact and disintegrated Bulgarian Fir cones
Abies alba foliage from Dinaric calcareous fir forests on Mt. Orjen

Firs (Abies) are a genus of between 45-55 species of evergreen conifers in the family Pinaceae. All are trees, reaching heights of 10-80 m (30-260 ft) tall and trunk diameters of 0.5-4 m (2-12 ft) when mature. Firs can be distinguished from other members of the pine family by their needle-like leaves, attached to the twig by a base that resembles a small suction cup; and by erect, cylindrical cones 5-25 cm (2-10 in) long that disintegrate at maturity to release the winged seeds. Identification of the species is based on the size and arrangement of the leaves, the size and shape of the cones, and whether the bract scales of the cones are long and exserted, or short and hidden inside the cone. They are most closely related to the cedars (Cedrus). Firs are found through much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, occurring in mountains over most of the range.

Firs are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Chionodes abella (recorded on White Fir), Autumnal Moth, Conifer Swift (a pest of Balsam Fir), The Engrailed, Grey Pug, Mottled Umber and Pine Beauty.

Douglas-firs are not true firs, being of the genus Pseudotsuga.

Contents

Classification

  • Section Grandis (western North America to Mexico and Guatemala, lowlands in north, moderate altitudes in south)
  • Section Piceaster (southern Spain, northwest Africa)
  • Section Amabilis (Pacific coast mountains, North America and Japan, in high rainfall mountains)

Uses

The wood of most firs is considered unsuitable for general timber use, and is often used as pulp or for the manufacture of plywood and rough timber. Nordmann Fir, Noble Fir, Fraser Fir and Balsam Fir are very popular Christmas trees, generally considered to be the best trees for this purpose, with aromatic foliage that does not shed many needles on drying out. Many are also very decorative garden trees, notably Korean Fir and Fraser Fir, which produce brightly coloured cones even when very young, still only 1-2 m (3-6 ft) tall. Other fir trees can grow anywhere between 30 and 236 feet tall.

References

  1. ^ a b Shorn, Howard; Wehr, Wesley (1986). "Abies milleri, sp. nov., from the Middle Eocene Klondike Mountain Formation, Republic, Ferry County, Washington". Burke Museum Contributions in Anthropology and Natural History 1: 1-7. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
v • d • e
Genera of the Pinaceae family
Pinus · Picea · Cathaya · Larix · Pseudotsuga · Abies · Cedrus · Keteleeria · Pseudolarix · Nothotsuga · Tsuga

Wikipedia content modification information:

  • This page was last modified on 21 November 2008, at 23:57.

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