Tsuga caroliniana
Tsuga
Carolina hemlock
hemlock, pruche
brown, scaly and fissured.
gray to brown, scaly, often deeply furrowed.
horizontal, often tending to be arranged in flattened "sprays" and arched downward; short (spur) shoots absent;
young twigs and distal portions of stem flexuous and pendent, roughened by peglike projections persisting after leaves fall.
light brown, thinly covered with short, dark hairs.
oblong, 2–3mm.
mostly rounded at apex, not resinous.
10–20mm, mostly spreading in all directions from twigs, flat but slightly revolute;
abaxial surface glaucous, with 2 broad, conspicuous stomatal bands, adaxial surface shiny green;
margins entire.
borne singly, persisting several years, ± 2-ranked or radiating in all directions, flattened to somewhat angular; abruptly narrowed to a petiolelike base, set on peglike projections, these angled, projected forward, sheath absent;
apex rounded or notched;
resin canals 1.
borne on year-old twigs.
solitary, globose, brown.
cones ovoid to oblong, 2.5–4 × 1.5–2.5cm;
scales oblong, 12–18 × 8–12mm, bases clawed, apex rounded.
cones maturing in 1 year, shedding seeds and falling soon thereafter or persisting for several years, pendent, ovoid, oblong, or oblong-cylindric, sessile or nearly so;
scales persistent, shape various, thin, leathery, lacking apophysis and umbo;
bracts small, included.
=12.
=24.
Tsuga caroliniana
Tsuga
Tsuga caroliniana is valuable as an attractive ornamental; a number of cultivars have been developed. The wood is of little commercial importance because of the combination of mediocre quality and the relative rarity of the species in nature.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Species of Tsuga are found naturally in areas of relatively moist climates where water stresses are minimal. Most are conspicuous, if not dominant, members of the communities in which they occur.
Hemlock wood is moderately strong and pliable and lacks resin ducts. With the decline of associated species considered superior in commercial value, hemlocks have become important in the timber industry, especially for pulp. Hemlocks are also widely used for horticultural purposes; numerous cultivars have been developed.
Species ca. 10 (4 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Leaves mostly spreading in all directions from twigs, bearing stomates on both surfaces or on abaxial surface only; seed cones ovoid, oblong, or oblong-cylindric, 2.5-6 cm; scales oblong, 8-18 mm. | → 2 |
1. Leaves mostly appearing 2-ranked, bearing stomates on abaxial surface only; seed cones ovoid, (1-)1.5-2.5(-3) cm; scales ovate to cuneate, 8-15 mm. | → 3 |
2. Leaves bearing stomates on both surfaces, thicker along midline; seed cones 3-6 cm, half as wide; montane tree of w North America. | T. mertensiana |
2. Leaves bearing stomates on abaxial surface only, flat, not notably thicker along midline, but slightly revolute; seed cones 2.5-4 cm, more than half as wide; montane tree of se United States. | T. caroliniana |
3. Buds 2.5-3.5 mm; crown narrowly conic; tree of w North America. | T. heterophylla |
3. Buds 1.5-2.5 mm; crown broadly conic; tree of e North America. | T. canadensis |
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