Calocedrus formosana

(Florin) Florin (1956)

Common names

Taiwan incense-cedar [English]; 台湾肖楠 tái wān xiào nán, 台湾翠柏 tái wān cui bai [Chinese].

Taxonomic notes

Syn: Libocedrus macrolepis sensu Hayata, Libocedrus formosana Florin, Libocedrus macrolepis Benth. var. formosana (Florin) Kudo, Heyderia formosana (Florin) Li (Li 1975), Calocedrus macrolepis var. formosana (Florin) W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu (1978).

Description

Trees to 23 m tall and 300 cm dbh, the trunk often crooked. Bark smooth, purplish red-brown. Branchlets distichous, alternate. Leaves scalelike, obtuse, 1.5–2.5 mm wide, dark green outside, pale green within. Female cones oblong, 10–15 mm long, slightly curved, with 4 scales, the 2 lateral ones fertile. Seeds 1–2 to each scale, 8–12 mm long including a single wing (Li 1975). See García Esteban et al. (2004) for a detailed characterization of the wood anatomy.

Distribution and Ecology

Taiwan: N and central parts of the island at 33–1900 m elevation (Li 1975). Hardy to Zone 9 (cold hardiness limit between -6.6°C and -1.1°C) (Bannister and Neuner 2001).

Remarkable Specimens

No data as of 2026-01-28.

Ethnobotany

No data as of 2026-01-28.

Observations

A review of 21st century collection records suggests that the best place to find this species in habitat is in the mountains of Hsinchu County.

Remarks

The epithet refers to Formosa, an old name for Taiwan.

Citations

Florin, C. R. 1956. Nomenclatural notes on genera of living gymnosperms. Taxon 5(8):188-192 (p. 192).

See also

The species account at Threatened Conifers of the World.

Farjon (2005) provides a detailed account, with illustrations.

Huang 1994 (the Flora of Taiwan).