Nageia fleuryi

(Hickel) de Laub. 1987

Common names

Kim giao (FIPI 1996).

Taxonomic notes

Syn: Podocarpus fleuryi Hickel 1930, Decussocarpus fleuryi (Hickel) de Laubenfels 1969 (Farjon 1998).

Description

Tree 15-25 m tall with straight bole and pyramidal crown. Branches horizontal or slightly pendulous. Bark brown grey, peeled off into fragments. Leaves oval to lanceolate, opposite or nearly opposite, leaf-blade thick and hard; with curved nerves. Male cone cylindrical, in groups of 3-4 at axils. Female cone solitary at the axil of two opposite leaves. Mature cones are brownish violet and globose with a diameter of 1.5-2.5 cm and thick stalk (FIPI 1996).

Distribution and Ecology

China: Guangdong (Gaoyao, Longmen, Zengcheng), Guangxi (Hepu), Yunnan (Mengzi, Pingbian); Cambodia; Laos; Vietnam (Farjon 1998). Found in most of mountainous provinces of Vietnam, especially in Ninh Binh, Hoa Binh, Thanh Hoa and Nghe An provinces. The species occurs sparsely in primary and slightly disturbed evergreen rain forests at elevations of 200-1000 m, usually mixed with Madhuca pasquieri, Vatica odorata and Quercus bambusaefolia. At Cuc Phuong and Cat Ba National Parks, the species occurs in groups and is the main species in some stands. A light-demanding species thriving well on good sites with deep, well-drained soils, developed from limestone (FIPI 1996).

Zone 9 (cold hardiness limit between -6.6°C and -1.1°C) (Bannister and Neuner 2001).

Remarkable Specimens

No data as of 2023.02.21.

Ethnobotany

Wood white, fine, light, very beautiful and durable. Used for art works, chopsticks and cabinet work. Leaves used trees in medicine to cure cough. Used as an ornamental in parks, along avenues and at pagodas and temples (FIPI 1996).

Observations

Cuc Phuong and Cat Ba National Parks in Vietnam might be good places to seek it.

Remarks

The epithet honors French botanist J. François Fleury (1882-1919), who collected the type specimen in 1857.

This is an endemic and endangered tree species of Vietnam, depleted from its former numbers because of the demand for its timber. It should be strictly protected at Cat Ba and Cuc Phuong National Parks (FIPI 1996).

Citations

See also

The species account at Threatened Conifers of the World.

Hiep et al. 2004.

Huang 1994 (the Flora of Taiwan).

Luu and Thomas 2004 provide a description, range map, conservation status, drawings and photos, and a wealth of additional information.

Wu and Raven 1999.