About Cedrus libani A.Rich.
Cedrus libani A.Rich., commonly known as Lebanon cedar, can reach 40 meters (130 feet) in height, with a massive single-stemmed columnar trunk that can grow up to 2.5 meters (8 feet 2 inches) in diameter. Old trees grown in open settings often develop trunks that fork into several large, upright branches. Its bark is rough, scaly, and colored dark grey to blackish brown, marked by deep horizontal fissures, and flakes off in small chips. First-order branches grow upward in young trees; as they reach their full massive size, they shift to a horizontal, wide-spreading growth pattern. Second-order branches are dense and grow along a horizontal plane. The crown is conical when young, and becomes broadly flat-topped with age, with fairly level branches; trees growing in dense forests retain a more conical shape. C. libani var. libani is endemic to high-elevation mountains around the Eastern Mediterranean, located in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. This variety grows in well-drained calcareous lithosols on rocky, north- and west-facing slopes and ridges, and thrives in rich loam or sandy clay when grown in full sun. Its natural habitat has warm, dry summers and cool, moist winters, with annual precipitation between 1,000 and 1,500 millimeters (39 to 59 inches); trees at higher elevations are covered by heavy snow each year. In Lebanon and Turkey, this variety grows most abundantly at elevations from 1,300 to 3,000 meters (4,300 to 9,800 feet), where it forms either pure forests or mixed forests alongside Cilician fir (Abies cilicica), European black pine (Pinus nigra), Turkish pine (Pinus brutia), and multiple juniper species. In Turkey, this variety can grow at elevations as low as 500 meters (1,600 feet). C. libani var. brevifolia grows under similar habitat conditions in the Troodos Mountains of Cyprus, at medium to high elevations ranging from 900 to 1,525 meters (2,953 to 5,003 feet). Extensive deforestation has taken place over centuries, leaving only small fragments of the original C. libani forests intact. Deforestation has been especially severe in Lebanon and on Cyprus; on Cyprus, only small trees up to 25 meters (82 feet) tall survive today, even though Pliny the Elder recorded C. libani trees reaching 40 meters (130 feet) tall there historically. Multiple attempts to conserve Lebanon cedars have been made at different points throughout history. The first recorded conservation effort was led by Roman emperor Hadrian, who established an imperial forest and ordered its boundaries marked with inscribed stones; two of these boundary stones are held in the museum of the American University of Beirut. Large-scale cedar reforestation work is carried out across the Mediterranean region. In Turkey, more than 50 million young cedars are planted each year, covering an area of approximately 300 square kilometers (74,000 acres). Lebanese C. libani populations are also growing through an active program that combines replanting and protection of natural regeneration from browsing goats, hunting, forest fires, and woodworms. The Lebanese approach prioritizes natural regeneration by creating appropriate growing conditions. The Lebanese state has established several reserves for this species, including the Chouf Cedar Reserve, the Jaj Cedar Reserve, the Tannourine Reserve, the Ammouaa and Karm Shbat Reserves in the Akkar district, and the Cedars of God forest near Bsharri. Because it is difficult to distinguish C. libani from C. atlantica or C. deodara during the seedling stage, the American University of Beirut has developed a DNA-based identification method to ensure that reforestation efforts in Lebanon use native Lebanon cedars, not other cedar species. Cultivation of Lebanon cedar dates back at least 3,200 years, when the Hittite Empire established two populations of the species in northern Turkey, where it did not grow naturally. Today, the Lebanon cedar is widely planted as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens. The first Lebanon cedars introduced to Britain were brought by Edward Pococke, who collected seed between 1638 and 1639 while serving as chaplain to the Turkey Company based in Syria. After returning to Britain, he was appointed rector of Childrey; a tree he planted at the Childrey Rectory in 1646 is the oldest surviving C. libani specimen in Britain. Most other very early-planted C. libani trees in Britain were killed by an unusually severe winter in 1739–1740, but one planted at Peper Harow in Surrey in 1735 also survives. In Ireland, a C. libani tree at Adare Manor in County Limerick, thought to have been planted in 1645, may also come from Pococke's original import, but this has not been confirmed. The species is mentioned in John Evelyn's Sylva, or A Discourse of Forest-Trees and the Propagation of Timber. In Britain, cedars of Lebanon are well known for their plantings at London's Highgate Cemetery and Blenheim Palace. C. libani has earned the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit, a confirmation that was updated in 2017. In the United States, the state of Arkansas runs a Champion Tree program that documents exceptional tree specimens. A Lebanon cedar listed by this program grows inside Hot Springs National Park and is estimated to be more than 100 years old. Cedar wood from C. libani is valued for its fine grain, attractive yellow color, and fragrance. It is exceptionally durable and resistant to insect damage. C. libani wood has a density of 560 kg per cubic meter, and is used for furniture, construction, and handicrafts. In Turkey, shelterwood cutting and clearcutting techniques are used to harvest timber and encourage even forest regeneration. Cedar resin (cedria) and cedar essential oil (cedrum) are valuable extracts produced from the tree's timber and cones.
