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Woody > Abies > Abies hickelii > Abies hickelii

Abies hickelii





            Mike's Opinion

this is Mike

"

This is a good looking tree that fascinates me. I would own one, but it cannot grow in Canada's climates. I think it is an aesthetically pleasing tree with purple cones and its pyramidal shape, but all around it isn't really anything major, just nice and basic-- how I like it.



Michael Pascoe, NDP., ODH., CLT., MSc. (Plant Conservation)

"

Family
Pinaceae
Genus
Abies
Species
hickelii
Category
Woody
Type
Tree (evergreen)
USDA Hardiness Zone
8
Canadian Hardiness Zone
8b
RHS Hardiness Zone
H5
Temperature (°C)
(-12.1) - (-6.7)
Temperature (°F)
10.2 - 19.9
Height
30 m
Spread
7m
Photographs
Description and Growing Information
Flowering Period
General Description
This tree is not dense with foliage it is pretty open. It is a pyramidal form, and shiny light green needles.
Cultivation
You need a subtropical climate and volcanic soil to plant this tree. This tree is not tolerant to urban conditions. It needs to also have a 5.5 to 7 pH in the soil to grow.
Shape
This tree at early stages keeps broad upright pyramidal until mature growth.
Growth
Medium
ID Characteristic
Seed cones in early stages are purple. The pollen cones are yellow with red microsporophylls. Cones stand erect on tree branches.
Habitat
This tree is found in South Mexico at very high elevations up to 2500 m - 3000 m in subtropical environments. Soils are found with traces of volcanic origins. The climate is cool and moist and rainy in the winters.
Bark/Stem Description
The bark is greyish in colour and starts off smooth. When the tree matures it thickens and breaks up into quadrangular plates.
Flower/Leaf Bud Description
The leaf bud starts off being wrapped in a thin orange liner. When it gets bigger it breaks through and it turns into lime green cone shape with tiny needles.
Leaf Description
The needles can grow from 18-35 mm long and 1-1.8 mm wide. Shiny, light green in colour. Needles face the sun when in direct sunlight, and the needles in the shade are spirally arranged. The needles are flat and look like a double edge sword blade with a point at the top.
Flower Description
The pollen cones are made off of lateral shoots. These are short yellow, cone shaped with red microsporophylls.
Fruit Description
Seed cones are produced by lateral shoots. These are short erect oblong-cylindrical with a round apex. The length of them is 6-8 cm and the width is 2.5 to 3.5 cm. It starts off purple and after ripening it turns dark brown.
Colour Description
As a sapling, the foliage is a bright lime green. When the tree matures, the foliage turns into a shiny light green foliage. The bark of the tree is greyish in colour. The seed cones start as a purple, maturing to a dark brown. The pollen cones are yellow with red.
Texture Description
The texture of the bark is somewhat smooth near the bottom, getting rougher near the top.
Ethnobotanical Uses (Disclaimer)
Exploitation of the wood for timber is minor but it is mostly used in sawmills for domestic use.
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