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Siberian Fir




  Name Siberian Fir
  Regnum Plant ae
  Divisio Pinophyta
  Classis Pinopsida
  Ordo Pinales
  Familia Pinaceae
  Genus '' Abies ''
  Species '''''A sibirica'''''
  Binomial ''Abies sibirica''
  Binomial Authority Ledeb


Siberian Fir (''Abies sibirica'') is a Conifer ous Evergreen Tree native to the Taiga east of the Volga River and south of 67°40' North Latitude through Turkestan , northeast Xinjiang , Mongolia and Heilongjiang . The tree lives in the cold boreal climate on moist soils in mountains or river basins at elevations of 1900-2400 m. It is very shade-tolerant, frost-resistant, and hardy, surviving temperatures down to −50 °C. It rarely lives over 200 years due to the susceptibility to Fungal decay in the wood.

Siberian Fir grows 30-35 m tall with a trunk diameter of 0.5-1 m at breast height and a conical crown. The Bark is grey-green to grey-brown and smooth with Resin blisters typical of most firs. Shoots are yellow-grey, resinous, and slightly pubescent. The Leaves are needle-like, 2-3 cm long and 1.5 cm broad on average. They are light green above with two grey-white Stoma tal bands underneath, and are directed upwards along the stem. They are soft, flattened, and strongly aromatic. The Cones are cylindrical, 5-9.5 cm long and 2.5-3.5 cm broad, with small Bract s hidden by the scales. They ripen from bluish to brown or dark brown in mid- Autumn . The seeds, 7 mm long with a triangular wing 0.7-1.3 cm long, are released when the cone disintegrates after maturity.

There are two Varieties :
  • ''Abies sibirica'' var. ''sibirica''. Described above.

  • ''Abies sibirica'' var. ''semenovii'' (B. Fedtschenko) Farjon. Endemic in Kyrgyzstan . Branchlets noticeably ridged and grooved. Resin canals marginal. Cones yellow-brown, with broader bracts than those of var. ''sibirica''.


Essential Oil s extracted from the leaves are used in Aromatherapy and Perfume s. The wood is soft, lightweight, and weak. It is used in construction, Furniture , and Wood Pulp .


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