Book of Mediterranean Trees, Shrubs and Climbers
Index
Family
Pinaceae
Genus
Cedrus [SE-drus]
from Gr. Kedros, the Cedar of Pliny. alluding to the fragrance
Species
deodara [de-o-DAR-a]
from the Indian state Deodar
Properties
tree
Cedrus deodara (deodar cedar, Himalayan cedar, or deodar/devdar/devadar/devadaru;
Sanskrit देवदारु devadāru, Hindi: देवदार devadār, दारूक dāruk; Urdu: ديودار/ دیار
deodār; Kannada:ದೇವಧಾರ Chinese: 雪松 xuě sōng) is a species of cedar native to the western
Himalayas in eastern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan (especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa)
and India (Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Darjeeling and Uttarakhand
states), southwesternmost Tibet in (China) and western Nepal, occurring at 1,500–3,200 m
(4,921–10,499 ft) altitude. It is a large evergreen coniferous tree reaching 40–50 m
(131–164 ft) tall, exceptionally 60 m (197 ft) with a trunk up to 3 m (10 ft) in
diameter. It has a conic crown with level branches and drooping branchlets. The leaves
are needle-like, mostly 2.5–5 cm (0.98–1.97 in) long, occasionally up to 7 cm (2.8 in)
long, slender (1 mm (0.039 in) thick), borne singly on long shoots, and in dense
clusters of 20–30 on short shoots; they vary from bright green to glaucous blue-green in
colour. The female cones are barrel-shaped, 7–13 cm (2.8–5.1 in) long and 5–9 cm
(2.0–3.5 in) broad, and disintegrate when mature (in 12 months) to release the winged
seeds. The male cones are 4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 in) long, and shed their pollen in
autumn.
