It is found only in China, usually recognized by the needles on its leaders mostly recurved or reflexed. It occurs in the drier, colder northern regions of central China in Sichuan and Gansu provinces at elevations between 2300 and 3600 m, usually on windy cliffs or in deep river valleys. Sometimes, however, also appears in dry low scrub on exposed mountain slopes.
It is a small to medium-sized tree mostly with conical crown. It has rather smooth gray or rusty brown bark, at first shedding in thin plates, becoming grayish-brown and detaching in thick plates.
The branchlets are grayish-white or light yellow with 1.2–2.5 centimetres (0.47–0.98 in) long needles horizontally outspreading on shade branches, radially outspreading on fertile branches; often thick and recurved, green to gray above and densely set with stoma-lines, with 2 light grayish-green stomatal bands below. Abies recurvata has 4–8 centimetres (1.6–3.1 in) long ovoid or cylindrical-ovoid, gray- or purplish blue cones; the bracts are somewhat shorter than the cone-scales, included or with slightly exposed tips. (info source: wikipedia.org)
Genus - Abies
Species - Recurvata ernestii
Common name - Ernest Mini Fir
Pre-Treatment - Required
Hardiness zones - 5 - 8
Height - 30'-50' / 9m - 15m
Spread - 20'-30' / 6m - 9m
Plant type - Tree
Vegetation type - Evergreen
Exposure - Full Sun, Partial Sun, Partial Shade
Growth rate - Fast
Soil PH - Acidic, Neutral
Soil type - Light (sandy), medium (loamy), heavy (clay)
Water requirements - Average Water
Landscape uses - Decorative for every garden, street parks, cold hardy. Woodland Garden Canopy.
Germination rate - 60%
Leaf / Flower color - Green / --
Useful Info | |
Germination | METHOD1: Abies seeds need to be "overwintered" or stratified before they will germinate. 1. Soak overnight in warm water. 2. Then pre-chill (stratify) for 30 days. Seeds can be stratified in dampened peat, sand or moist vermiculite , in a plastic box or bag at 4°C or 5°C in a refrigerator. The seeds should not be frozen or in a wet medium. Seed can be sown in early February in a greenhouse or outdoors in March. Normally will only germinate with light, but the stratification (described above) can help to increase the germination rate. Sow Abies seeds 2-4 mm deep in the seed sowing mix. Abies seeds will usually germinate in 21-40 days if overwintered and stratified or about 6 - 8 weeks if sown directly. METHOD2: Soak seeds in cool water for two periods of 10 hours, but with a night break between them. Then after the second period, let the seeds drying out for a few hours. Next, put seeds into closed plastic bags but with little holes on the upper bag to allow gas exchanges. Place these bags in cold room/lower part of a refrigerator at +2° to +4°C. Check it out and stir it every 2 to 3 days to avoid mould development and watch also for the first appearing radicules. It usually takes 3 to 5 weeks to get about 10% of radicules to appear and then it's time for sowing. |