Cedar(Latin, Cedrus) is a genus of coniferous evergreen trees of the Pine family (Coniferae). It has a spreading pyramidal or umbrella-shaped (in old trees) crown and a slender trunk with dark gray cracking scaly bark. The root system of cedar is superficial, so it is susceptible to wind blows.
Cedar needles are needle-shaped, three- or tetrahedral, hard and prickly, blue-green or silver-gray in color. They are collected in bundles of 30-40 pieces. On shortened or elongated shoots, they are arranged in a spiral or singly. Cedar needles live from three to six years.
Cedar blooms in autumn. Male and female cones are located throughout the crown. Female cones are 5-10 cm long and 4-6 cm wide, while male cones are single, surrounded by bunches of needles. Pollen with air sacs. The cones are shaped like a barrel or an egg, 5-10 cm long and 4-6 cm wide, single, erect, ripen in the 2-3rd year and crumble. Seed scales are broadly kidney-shaped. The seeds are resinous, 12-18 mm long, triangular, with a wing.
Cedars are giant plants. They can reach a height of up to 60 meters, the diameter of their crown is about 3 m. In addition, these giants are also long-lived: their life expectancy is 3000 years!
Basically, cedars grow in the mountains at an altitude of 1300-3600 m, forming forests together with fir, spruce, pine and oak.
There are four types of cedar. In the Atlas Mountains in northwestern Africa, Atlas cedar (C. atlantica) grows - a huge tree up to 60 m tall with a pyramidal crown, with bluish-green or silver-gray needles. Botanists call him "the aristocrat of the plant world." In Lebanon, Syria and other Asian countries you can find cedar of Lebanon (biblical) (C. libani). Residents of the island of Cyprus are proud of the Cypriot cedar (C. brevifolia), but some scientists consider it a subspecies of the Lebanese cedar (Cedrus libani var. brevifolia). The crown of the Cypriot cedar is cone-shaped in youth, spreading in adulthood, and umbrella-shaped in old age. Some specimens of this coniferous plant reach a height of 40 m. Its shoots are bare or slightly pubescent, hard tetrahedral needles are dark green, about 5-10 mm long. Cypriot cedar is characterized by light brown single barrel-shaped cones, up to 7 cm long and 4 cm in diameter. It differs from Lebanese cedar in having shorter needles, smaller cones and less frost resistance. In the Western Himalayas there is a Himalayan cedar (C. deodara) - a tree more than 50 m high with a pyramidal crown shape and thin gray-green needles. In general, cedar is distinguished by very hard, fine-grained, yellowish or reddish wood, very aromatic due to its high resin content, and also resistant to damage by fungi and insects.
The first information about cedar came to us from ancient Egyptian and ancient Greek history. For example, the ancient Egyptians were sure that this powerful and beautiful evergreen tree was created exclusively for them by the will of the fertility god Osiris. Knowing that cedar was resistant to rot, they built ships from its wood, and used cedar oil to embalm the dead.
Cedar is a healing tree. All parts of this plant have highly effective medicinal properties. Since ancient times, its nuts, resin and needles, turned into miraculous medicines and cosmetics, have helped maintain or restore health not only to people, but also to animals. The Sumerians were among the first to use cedar needles as a medicine. During archaeological excavations of the ancient Sumerian kingdom, clay tablets were found that confirm that 5 thousand years BC, representatives of this ancient nation used decoctions prepared from cedar needles for medicinal purposes.
In addition to the so-called true cedars, on almost all continents there are many tree species that the local population also calls cedar. It can even be deciduous trees. In Asia it is cedrela toona, or Burmese cedar, and in Africa it is Thompson's guarea, which is also called fragrant cedar. In Russia, the Siberian cedar pine is called Siberian cedar.
CULTIVATION FEATURES, SOIL, PLANTING RULES
Despite all the attractiveness of cedar, its cultivation is more difficult than other conifers (Scots pine, larch, spruce). For example, in summer this plant requires strictly regulated watering - without stagnation of water and without drying out.
In northern latitudes, cedars do not grow under natural conditions, since these trees are very heat-loving. Some artificially planted trees are located in the Nikitsky Botanical Garden in Crimea, on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, and also in Central Asia.
Cedar prefers well-drained, fresh loamy soils. It does not tolerate strong sea winds well, and also often suffers from chlorosis on too dry calcareous slopes.
For planting, it is better to choose early spring (before buds open) or autumn (after leaf fall). The place intended for cedar should be light, open and spacious, because this plant prefers to grow in free and sunny areas. Planting places for cedar seedlings are placed linearly or in groups with a distance between them of at least 3 m. If trees are sparsely planted, cedar begins to produce harvests from the age of 18.
When transplanting cedar to a permanent place, seedlings 6-8 years old are more reliable. They are dug up with a lump of earth (0.2x0.2x0.2 m) and transferred to the planting site, having previously wrapped the lump with film or a damp cloth. Seedlings with a closed root system are freed from containers before planting. Planting holes must be prepared in advance. At the same time, the excavated soil is mixed with fertilizers (peat, humus, rotted manure, wood ash), it is advisable to add 3-4 handfuls of forest litter from a coniferous forest.
Planting of cedar seedlings is carried out in areas with previously loosened, non-turfed loamy or sandy loam soil. The planting hole is dug 30% more than the volume of the roots of the seedlings. The prepared substrate is poured into the bottom of the hole and the roots of the seedling are placed in its center so that the root collar is at ground level. Next, the hole is filled with prepared loose soil, compacted by trampling and watered (0.5 buckets).
REPRODUCTION
In nature it reproduces by seeds. In culture it is propagated by grafting onto the rootstock of the main species.
DISEASES AND PESTS
Over 130 species of insects are known to harm cedars. Among them, the most significant damage is caused by: - cone moth: the main damage from this pest is observed when the cones are damaged in the spring, causing them to fall off. Control measures: spraying the plant at the beginning of flowering with Lepidocide P (1-1.5 kg/ha), Lepidocide, SK (1-1.6 l/ha). Repeat treatments after 7-10 days.
- spruce moth. Control measures: use the biological product Lepidocid 2-3 kg (l)/ha.
- cone-shaped moth. Control measures: it is recommended to use bacterial preparations against younger caterpillars: Bitoxi-bacillin - 3-5 kg/ha, Lepidocid -1.0-1.5 kg(l)/ha.
- coniferous moth: the initial consumption of needles by caterpillars does not cause the death of damaged plantings, since the caterpillars feed mainly on old needles, but in case of repeated damage, when not only old, but also young needles and buds are eaten, the planting is in danger of drying out. Control measures: spraying is carried out against younger caterpillars with the biological product Lepidocid - Zl/ha.
- spruce sawfly: lesions occur in 10-30-year-old cedars, as well as in young trees, especially in crops with dry growth conditions, well-lit and warmed up. They feed on young pine needles, gnawing them from the sides, often snacking whole. The remains of the needles dry out and are clearly visible. Outbreaks are identified in crops and young trees in the first half of June by the presence of partially or completely eaten May shoots of the current year with rusty remains of half-eaten needles. When calculating the degree of threat in the coming year, it can be assumed that 20 healthy female cocoons on average per 1 square meter are threatened with 100% consumption of plantations. m. bedding. Control measures: treatment of plantings damaged by sawfly larvae in May - June with the biological product Lepidocid - Zl/ha.
- the red pine sawfly causes the greatest damage in plantings up to 20 years of age. Foci are identified by typical damage to young larvae (they gnaw the needles from the sides, leaving intact the central vein, rough tips and bases, covered with a film, which dry out, turn yellow and curl). Control measures: treatment of plantings damaged by sawfly buds in May-June with the biological product Lepidocid - Zl/ha.
Significant damage to old cedars is also caused by variegated red rot of trunks caused by pine sponge, brown central rot, brown prismatic rot and Schweinitz tinder fungus.
The roots of cedar are affected by root sponge and Schweinitz polypore, which contributes to the windfall of trees. Trees with affected trunks must be removed from the site.
Swellings on the stems caused by rust fungus (Cronartium ribicola Dietz.) are sometimes observed in cedar seedlings and undergrowth; diseased plants must be removed and burned.
To protect cedars from pests and diseases, you should use chemical and biological methods to combat them, purchase only highly immune forms of plants, and also create optimal conditions for their growth.
LANDSCAPE DESIGN
Blue and silver forms of cedar are especially often used to decorate landscapes of gardens and parks. Now in Crimea and the Caucasus, cedars are also used in forest plantings.
Particularly drought-resistant Lebanese cedar is widely used in park construction in Central Asia (Samarkand, Tashkent, etc.), Atlas cedar is used in the Crimea and in the regions of inland Transcaucasia. This coniferous plant looks good in groups, contrasting against the background of other plantings with the contours of the crown and dark green needles. Cedar is even more attractive in single plantings, as well as when creating alley plantings in parks.
On Monday, after dense After breakfast (otherwise I would have been severely sick), we went to the mountains to look at the Cedar Valley. Interestingly, in Russian and Greek the name of the tree sounds almost the same - cedar/cedar).
The Cedar Valley, or Tripylos Nature Reserve, in the Paphos forest, was chosen as its home by the short-coniferous Cypriot cedar (lat. Cedrus brevifolia), which grows only in Cyprus and I was interested to see how it differs from the Siberian beauties. This valley is located at an altitude of 900-1400 m above sea level, approximately 70 km from Paphos and 45 km from Polis. The road is very winding, which is why I needed a hearty breakfast and sandwiches with me). It took us a long time to get there - about 2 hours with stops as soon as my stomach hinted at it).
Here is the road, pay attention to the sign, such signs are found every 50 meters.
View of the Cedar Valley itself.
After enjoying the fragrant air of the Cedar Valley, we went hunting for mouflons).
A little information: "Archaeological excavations indicate that mouflons have lived in Cyprus since Neolithic times (5800-3000 BC). Their herds were numerous, especially in the mountainous regions of Troodos. Mosaics and texts that have survived to this day from Greco times -Roman period, they talk about mouflon hunting, which was a favorite pastime of the nobility. It was believed that the lean meat of mouflon was very healthy, and with the development of a network of forest roads and the introduction of hunting rifles, this type of animal gradually began to disappear. At the beginning of the twentieth century, hunting for mouflon became a favorite pastime of British aristocrats, and local residents did not lag behind them.
Even natural caution did not save the mouflon from almost total extermination in the first half of the twentieth century. By 1938, there were about 15 mouflons left on the island. At the last moment, emergency measures were taken to save the almost extinct species.
The government passed a law banning mouflon hunting. The forest in the Paphos area was declared a protected area, and the ibex (rivals of the mouflon) and herders (potential hunters) were moved to other parts of Cyprus, halting their extinction. Currently there are approximately 100 to 200 mouflons.
Despite the fact that the Cypriot mouflon is smaller than its European counterparts, it is the largest animal in Cyprus).
Mouflon is considered one of the symbols of the island: it is present on the coat of arms of Cyprus, and a stylized image of a mountain sheep adorns the planes of the Cyprus airline Cyprus Airways.
Males wear spirally twisted horns 55-60 cm long and weigh about 35 kg. Females are much smaller - their weight reaches 25 kg. The length of the mouflon is about 110 cm. The height at the withers is 65-75 cm. Mouflons live for 12-15 years. The color of the animals varies from dark brown to light golden. The lower parts of the hooves, belly and nose are white. A characteristic feature of the mouflon - a black line starting on the head, running across the entire back and ending on a short tail - allows it to instantly “dissolve” in the forest.”
Not everyone is lucky enough to see mouflons in the reserve. My husband was lucky), and I was waiting for him in the car, because... you had to climb up the mountain to find them. In this case, with my puffing I would scare away all the living creatures in the area).
Photos of mouflons from the Internet (later you will understand why). 
Do you see mouflons? And they are there). (photo taken by husband:0). 
On the way back we stopped at a small forest church - the Church of the Holy Cross. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any information about it, but the building looks like it’s 16-17 centuries old. 
By striking this piece of iron, the priest gathered parishioners to the service. 
This ended our trip in the mountains and we went back to the sea. 
After lunch at the restaurant, we spent the rest of the day on the beach. 
Cedars are southern evergreen trees that grow in North Africa - on the Mediterranean coast (Lebanese cedar) and in southern Asia (Himalayan and Atlas cedars).
Cedar of Lebanon (biblical) have known since time immemorial. Its wood was highly valued in shipbuilding. It was exported to many countries around the world. Currently, only a few Lebanese cedar trees remain in Lebanon. On the left is a photograph of a Lebanese cedar, it is about a hundred years old, and this tree grows on the Black Sea coast, in the town of Dzhanhot.
Both Lebanese, Atlas and Himalayan cedars are heat-loving plants. In Russia they do not grow in their natural state. Some artificially planted trees, reaching more than a century old, grow in the Crimea (Nikita Botanical Garden) and on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus (Batumi, Sukhumi, Sochi).
Here, in the northern regions, they will not grow - they will freeze. All these cedars - Lebanese, Himalayan, Atlas - do not produce edible seeds, while our so-called Siberian cedar produces edible seeds (nuts). (M.M. Ignatenko “Siberian cedar”, M., Nauka, 1988.)
Cedar (Cedrus), a genus of coniferous evergreen trees of the pine family. Monoecious tall (25-50 m high) trees with a spreading, pyramidal or umbrella-shaped (in old trees) crown. The needles are 3-4 sided, prickly, bluish-green (gray-gray), silver-gray, collected in bunches on short shoots (30-40 needles each), single on growth shoots.
Male spikelets and female cones are located throughout the crown. Female cones are 5-10 cm long, 4-6 cm wide, ovoid or barrel-shaped, erect, ripen in the 2nd - 3rd year, and disintegrate on the tree when ripe.
The seeds (12-18mm long) are resinous, with a large wing, inedible. The root system is superficial. In nature it is propagated by seeds; in culture, valuable forms are propagated by grafting onto the rootstock of the main species.
It grows in the mountains at an altitude of 1300-4000 m along with fir, spruce, pine and other species. Prefers well-drained fresh loamy soils. Cedar does not tolerate strong sea winds and often suffers from chlorosis on too dry calcareous slopes. The wood is yellowish or reddish in color, aromatic, with high physical and mechanical properties, resistant to rotting and damage by insects.
There are 4 types of cedar. The first grows in the Atlas Mountains in the North-West. Africa - Atlas cedar (C. atlantica) . The second in Western Asia, in the mountains of Lebanon, Syria and Turkey - Lebanese or biblical cedar (C. libani) . The third type in the West. Himalayas - Himalayan cedar (C. deodora) . The fourth on about. Cyprus - Cypriot or short-coniferous cedar (C. brevifolia) .
The first three species within their range previously formed vast large forests, preserved as relict forests, usually divided into islands. Cedar (Atlas, Lebanese and Himalayan) has been cultivated since the 19th century. as decorative fast-growing tree species in the Southern Crimea, on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, in the South. and Vost. Transcaucasia, Central Asia (Samarkand).
There are known hybrids of Lebanese cedar and Himalayan cedar, characterized by heterosis. Cultivated species have a number of decorative forms depending on the growth pattern and habit of the crowns, the color of the needles, etc. Cedar is of great value for park construction. Himalayan cedar is also used to create original, molded hedges. Cedar is very resistant to pests and diseases. Since ancient times, cedar wood has been widely used in construction, for making furniture, crafts, religious objects, etc.
Often cedar is also called Siberian cedar pine and Korean cedar pine, a genus of coniferous trees Libocedrus (Libocedrus) . (Forest Encyclopedia, M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, vol. 1, 1985)
A little history
In the distant times of the development of Siberia, cedar forests attracted the attention of travelers and researchers for two main reasons. Firstly, this is the only habitat for sables.
The latter even replaced banknotes for a long time in Ancient Rus'. Secondly, travelers were attracted by delicious healing nuts, the kernels of which are filled with valuable cedar oil. But still, historians link the development of the wild spaces of Siberia mainly with the extraction of sable furs.
Where did the name of this tree come from, although it belongs to the genus “pine”?
According to assumptions, Siberian cedar most likely received its name from Russian pioneers, who in those distant times visited the Siberian lands and became acquainted with this valuable tree. Seeing the fluffy evergreen crown of the tree, feeling the aroma of its needles, assessing the quality of the wood, they called it Siberian cedar, because it reminded them of the sacred Lebanese cedar, which they already knew about.
Here is how the Russian scientist F. Keppen writes about it: “It is more likely that the Cossacks who came to the Urals, fascinated by the sight of a beautiful coniferous tree, hitherto unknown to them, gave it at random the name of the glorious cedar, which they knew about only by hearsay.”
During the development of the Urals and Siberia, Russian explorers immediately appreciated cedar forests as a source of tasty high-calorie nuts, edible oil, anti-scorbutic and disinfectant needles, shoots and resin, as a habitat for valuable fur-bearing animals, especially sable, and also as catchment areas for fish-rich rivers.
Along with this, Siberian cedar has always been a subject of admiration, and in the past, veneration due to the majesty of its mighty trunk, the lush dense crown, and the mysterious twilight of its groves.
And a contemporary of A. S. Pushkin, an expert on Siberian forests, local historian and naturalist V. Dmitriev, back in 1818, wrote with admiration about this amazing Russian tree in his article “Siberian Cedar”.
He admired: “Be proud, you places beloved by the sun, be proud, O heights of Lebanon, of your cedars: not having seen you in my fatherland on the motherland that belongs to Russia, I do not dare to dignify you, but in my eyes the shady cedar of rich Siberia will not yield to you in Your beauty will replace you for me too. What majesty is in the bearing of this tree, what a sacred shadow in the density of its forests.”
The first culture of Siberian cedar in the European part of Russia, about which there is documentary evidence, dates back to the second half of the 16th century, when the Tolgoskaya cedar grove was founded near Yaroslavl, 8 km from the city. This grove is located on the left bank of the Volga, 300 m from its bank, on the territory of the former Tolga Monastery, which was built in 1314.
They started growing cedar in the Moscow region a long time ago. This type of tree attracted attention back in the 17th century. in Moscow and its environs. These trees were planted in many princely estates. Particularly noteworthy is the Nikolo-Uryupino estate (Krasnogorsk district), which back in the 17th century belonged to the Odoevsky princes. The Siberian cedars in Abramtsevo Park (Sergiev Posad district) are of great interest.
There are cedars in the Tarusovo estate, Taldomsky district, in the Morozovka estate (Solnechnogorsk district), in the Leninsky district (in the Valtsevo estate, in Gorki Leninskiye), in the Mytishchi district (Vinogradovo, sanatorium "Marfino"), in the Ruza district (Nikolskoye-Gagarino, in Khimki district (Vasilievskoye-Skurygino), in the Podolsk region (Vorontsovo estate, Ostafyevo), in the Serpukhov region (Pushchino-Vyazemskoye, Turov) and other places.
There are also cedar groves and individual trees in St. Petersburg and its environs, in the Vologda region (village of Chargino, Gryazovets district), in Karelia (Sortavala), on the island of Valaam, in the Arkhangelsk region (village of Koryazhma, Kotlas district), on Solovetsky Islands, in the Murmansk Arctic (Polar forestry enterprise of the Murmansk region, Apatity), in the Novgorod region (Vybiti estate, Solovetsky district, Valdai, in Chudsky, Staro-Russian, Lyubytinsky, Pestovsky, Khvoyninsky, Okulovsky, Krestetsky and other areas ), in the Pskov region, in the Kalinin region, in the Smolensk region, in the Kaluga region, in the Vladimir region, in the Ivanovo region, in Belarus, in the Vitebsk region, in the Mogilev region, in the Gorky region, in the Kirov region and in many other villages, cities, regions and regions of Russia.
Siberian cedar is the beauty and national pride of Russia, it is the wealth of our country, it is a symbol of strength, health and power, it is a symbol of sustainability and longevity.
Short-coniferous cedar (lat. Cedrus brevifolia)- one of the species of plants of the genus Cedar (lat. Cedrus) of the Pine family (lat. Pinaceae). A number of botanists consider this species to be just a subspecies of Cedar of Lebanon, and therefore this variant may also be found in the literature. But, since not all botanists agree with this opinion, we will look at the short-coniferous cedar as an independent species of the small genus Cedar. The homeland of the short-coniferous cedar is the island of Cyprus, the only place on the planet where in the wild nature of mountainous areas you can find mighty trees of this species with coniferous foliage. Therefore, the tree has an alternative name - “Cypriot cedar”.
Description
The place of residence of the short-coniferous cedar is limited not only to the island of Cyprus, but also to just one valley, which is called the “Valley of the Cedars”. This is the so-called Paphos Forest of the Trypilos Nature Reserve, one of the tourist attractions of Cyprus.Although some botanists consider Cedar of Cyprus to be a subspecies of Cedar of Lebanon, it is inferior to it in size. The average height of mature evergreen trees is limited to 12 (twelve) meters, although individual individuals can be found growing up to 30 (thirty) meters in height. The relatively low trunk reaches two meters in diameter.
Powerful horizontal branches have a slight slope to the surface of the earth, giving the pyramidal crown of the tree in its youth the appearance of a huge umbrella. Gray-brown bark is visible under sweeping, wide branches covered with a thick carpet of needle-like needles.
“Short-coniferous” Cedar was called for the length of its needles, which ranges from 5 (five)-8 (eight) millimeters to 12 (twelve) millimeters, which rarely happens. The color of the needles is gray-blue-green. The needles do not like loneliness, gathering into a cute fluffy bunch.
The short-coniferous cedar blooms in the first autumn months. At this time, the pale brown color of male cones and the reddish color of female cones are added to the bluish-green color of the needles, which, after pollination, ripen in about a year, releasing winged seeds, which for the time being hide behind protective scales. The maximum length of the cylindrical-oval cones is 7 (seven) centimeters.
Cypriot cedar is a rather unpretentious plant that lives on mountain slopes, starting from 400 (four hundred) meters above sea level and above. Although the short-coniferous cedar is inferior in longevity to the Lebanese and Himalayan cedar, which can live for a thousand years or more, their life expectancy still commands respect, amounting to hundreds of years.
Advantages of Cypriot Cedar
The strong appearance of the tree with fluffy thick needles is very decorative, and therefore suitable for decorating parks and gardens. Excursions are organized for tourists to the Cyprus Valley of Cedars, demonstrating the natural beauty of the tree, which cannot be found anywhere else on the globe.The aroma of cedar forest is a real life-giving force that cleanses the human respiratory system and gives vital energy to the human body.
Vulnerability of Cedar of Cyprus
The fact that this type of Cedar grows only in one place on the planet makes the tree easily vulnerable to natural elements, for example, fires or sudden climate changes. Today, measures are being taken to protect the Cedar Forest in Cyprus in order to preserve this heritage of the plant world for posterity and our unique planet.Not far from Paphos, in the Trypilos nature reserve there is an amazing cedar grove. It has more than 40 thousand large trees, which are under state protection. Cedar has strong wood, which is why in ancient times cedar trees were used as a material for building ships. Therefore, there are few of these trees left on the island. The cedar grove in the Trypilos Nature Reserve is considered relatively young, having been planted at the beginning of the 20th century. In general, cedar is a long-liver and lives for more than five centuries.
The grove is located at an altitude of about a thousand meters above sea level. Cedar is quite capricious in this regard - it does not grow in lowlands, below 400 meters above sea level.
If you find yourself in the vicinity of Paphos, be sure to set aside one day to visit these evergreen resinous trees. Walking through the grove you can enjoy the magnificent pine smell, admire the lush spreading branches and even see the local inhabitants. Foxes, hares, and partridges found homes in the grove. Among the inhabitants you can find a rare breed of mouflon - wild sheep. Environmental authorities have banned mouflon hunting, which has prevented their extinction. By the way, this animal is considered one of the symbols of Cyprus, because it is the stylistic image of the mouflon that is reflected on the emblem of the national airline.
Cedar Valley is a wonderful place to relax your soul and body. You can wander among the mighty trunks and all the bustle of the city will appear unnecessary and empty. Hiking in the cedar valley improves your health - the pine smell saves you from many ailments. People with asthma often come here - in these places they forget about their illness...
If you plan to spend the whole day here, be sure to bring breakfast with you. There are comfortable benches along the alley where you can sit, relax and have a snack. However, it is much more pleasant to sit on a blanket among the trees and look at the sun through the thick crown. In any case, a trip to the cedar valley will leave only the warmest and most comfortable memories in your soul.
