Larix mastersiana
Larix mastersiana
The Masters larch (Larix mastersiana Rehder & E.H.Wilson) is an arboreal species belonging to the Pinaceae family.
Systematics –
From a systematic point of view it belongs to:
Eukaryota Domain,
Kingdom Plantae,
Pinophyta Division,
Pinopsida class,
Order Pinales,
Pinaceae family,
Genus Larix,
L. mastersiana species.
The terms are synonymous:
– Larix griffithiana var. mastersiana (Rehd. & E.H.Wilson) Silba;
– Larix griffithii var. mastersiana (Rehd. & E.H.Wilson) Silba.
Etymology –
The term Larix comes from the Latin name of the larch, assonant with the Greek term λᾶρός láros pleasant, referring to the aroma.
The specific Mastersian epithet was given in honor of the English botanist Maxwell Tylden Masters (1833-1907).
Geographic Distribution and Habitat –
Larix mastersiana is a conifer native to China and present in the west of the Sichuan region, where it is endemic, in an area between 2500 and 3500 m of altitude.
Its habitat is characterized by steep areas, on ridges, in wooded areas or in some more isolated populations, where it grows in mixed coniferous forests along the sides of mountain streams in an area where it is threatened by deterioration and therefore the habitat loss.
Description –
Larix mastersiana is a deciduous conifer that grows to a height of about 25m.
The trunk can reach 80 cm in diameter at a man’s height.
It has a fissured bark, which is gray-brown or dark brown in color.
The twigs are pendulous, the shoots are long and have a puberulent consistency, yellow-brown in color, graying with age. The short shoots are 3 to 4 mm in diameter, are brownish yellow and densely pubescent.
The leaves are needle-like, 12-35 mm long, about 1 mm thick and keeled on both sides.
The female cones are brownish purple when young, brown when ripe, cylindrical-ellipsoidal, 2,5 – 4 cm long and 1,5 – 2 cm broad. The scales of the seeds are obovate-kidney-shaped, 8-11 mm long and 10-13 mm broad with a densely pubescent lower surface and an emarginated apex. The bracts are extended, dark brown-purple in color, broadly lanceolate, reflected in shape and 11-15 mm long.
The seeds are light gray in color, obliquely obovoid in shape, 7 – 9 mm long including the wings. Pollination takes place from April to May; seed maturity in October.
Cultivation –
Larix mastersiana is a conifer found in China, at the western end of the Sichuan basin in Sichuan province, growing at altitudes between 2,500 and 3,500 m above sea level, where it is found in mixed coniferous forests along the sides of the creek in the mountains.
It is a plant that has a limit of resistance to cold between -17.7 ° -12.2 ° C.
Reproduction occurs by seed.
Customs and Traditions –
Larix mastersiana was first described in 1914 by Rehder et E.H. Wilson in Charles Sprague Sargent (1841–1927), the Chinese name is: 四川 红 杉 (hongshan).
The species is named in honor of Maxwell T. Masters (1833 – 1907), a British botanist who did extensive morphological and taxonomic work with conifers, including naming several Chinese and Japanese species, as well as combining the names of others in the forms that are used today.
This plant is used for its timber which is used in construction, for sleepers in railway connections and the furniture and bark for the production of tannins. The species is also used for reforestation.
Preparation Method –
Larix mastersiana is a conifer used for its timber.
On the other hand, there is no certain information regarding its use in the food or medicine field.
Guido Bissanti
Sources
– Acta Plantarum – Flora of the Italian Regions.
– Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
– GBIF, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
– Useful Tropical Plants Database.
– Conti F., Abbate G., Alessandrini A., Blasi C. (ed.), 2005. An annotated checklist of the Italian vascular flora, Palombi Editore.
– Pignatti S., 1982. Flora of Italy, Edagricole, Bologna.
– Treben M., 2000. Health from the Lord’s Pharmacy, Advice and experiences with medicinal herbs, Ennsthaler Editore.
Photo source:
– https://spain.inaturalist.org/taxa/135817-Larix-mastersiana
– http://cdn.flmnh.ufl.edu/Herbarium/jpg/270/270960a1.jpg
Warning: Pharmaceutical applications and alimurgical uses are indicated for informational purposes only, they do not represent in any way a medical prescription; therefore no responsibility is taken for their use for curative, aesthetic or food purposes.