Abies numidica

Abies numidica, the Algerian fir, is a species of fir found only in Algeria, where it is endemic on Djebel Babor, the second-highest mountain (2,004 m) in the Algerian Tell Atlas.

Description

File:Abies numidica, Jebel Babor, Sétif, Algeria 1.jpg

Foliage and cones, Jebel Babor

Abies numidica is a medium-sized to large evergreen tree growing to 20–35 m tall, with a trunk up to 1 m diameter. The leaves are needle-like, moderately flattened, 1.5–2.5 cm long and 2–3 mm wide by 1 mm thick, glossy dark green with a patch of greenish-white stomata near the tip above, and with two greenish-white bands of stomata below. The tip of the leaf is variable, usually pointed, but sometimes slightly notched at the tip, particularly on slow-growing shoots on older trees. The cones are glaucous green with a pink or violet tinge, maturing brown, 10–20 cm long and 4 cm broad, with about 150–200 scales, each scale with a short bract (not visible on the closed cone) and two winged seeds; they disintegrate when mature to release the seeds.

Distribution

Abies numidica grows in a high-altitude Mediterranean climate at 1,800–2,004 m (and rarely down to 1,220 m) with an annual precipitation of 1,500–2,000 mm, the great majority of which falls as winter snow; the summers are warm and very dry. It is closely related to Abies pinsapo (Spanish fir), which occurs further west in the Rif mountains of Morocco and in southern Spain.

Cultivation and uses

Algerian fir is occasionally grown as an ornamental tree in parks and larger gardens. It is valued among firs for its drought and atmospheric pollution tolerance.