Cedar, Atlas
Cedrus atlantica
Pinaceae - Pine

Description

Leaves: Needles borne singly; 3/4" to 1-1/2" long; stiff; evergreen; usually blue-green; four-sided but somewhat flattened in cross-section; pointed tip; spirally arranged on new growth, on older growth occurring in dense clusters of 30 to 40 on short spur shoots.

Twigs/buds: Twigs somewhat downy or glabrous; less densely-branched than Cedrus libani. Buds small and ovoid, with few scales.

Flowers/fruit: Monoecious. Seed cones fir-like, upright; mature in two seasons; about 2" to 3" long and 2" wide; green when young, brown at maturity.

Bark: Smooth and gray on young stems; older stems with dark gray-brown furrowed bark.

Wood: Not important except locally where native.

General: Native to the Atlas Mountains in Morocco and Algeria. Slow to medium growth rate. Likes warm sites, with good moisture but deep, well-drained soils. Shade intolerant.

Landscape Use: Excellent specimen tree with beautiful canopy and good color. Supposedly zones 6-9, but doing well in several Salt Lake City locations and in Utah County at BYU, and in Cache County on the USU campus and elsewhere.

Cultivars: 'Argentea', 'Aurea', 'Compacta', 'Fastigiata', 'Glauca', 'Glauca Pendula', 'Horstmann', 'Horstmann Silberspitz', 'Pendula'.

Characteristics