Thursday, August 18, 2011

Coast she-oak - Casuarina equisetifolia L

Casuarina equisetifolia has broader geographic range than any other kind Casuarina. This plant grows naturally along the shoreline of the tropical forests of Queensland and the Northern Territory of Australia, Malaysia throughout the region, down to the islands Kra Isthmus (Thailand).
Casuarina equisetifolia Forst. & Forst. (syn. C. litorea L.), is the most widespread and well-known member of the family Casuarinaceae, and has many names: Casuarina, ironwood, coast she-oak, horsetail, Australian pine, whistling pine, beefwood, agoho (Philippines), ru (Malaysia), filao (Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies) and nokonoko (Fiji). All the casuarinas are nitrogen fixing. Casuarinas support an actinorhiza symbiont in their root nodules, as opposed to the rhizobium symbiont found in the root nodules of leguminous trees that fix N2. 


Taxonomy: 
Kingdom: Plantae (Plants) 
Kingdom: Tracheobionta (vascular plants) 
Super Division: Spermatophyta (seed production) 
Division: Magnoliophyta (flowering plants) 
Class: Magnoliopsida (two dots / dikotil) 
Under Class: Hamamelidae 
Ordo: Casuarinales 
Family: Casuarinaceae 
Genus: Casuarina 
Species: Casuarina equisetifolia L.

Appropriate in light soils, sandy, fast-growing on thin soils and tolerant of salty soils and salty winds. Grows well in soils with pH 5.0 to 9.5. Not resistant to high and low, no shade and susceptible to fire. Produce nitrogen (Frankia symbiosis). Cycle of 40-50 years.
The utility 
Including the type of versatility, industry and households. Known as "the best firewood in the world" and also produces high quality coal. The wood is very hard to work for sawnwood.

Because the salt-resistant, this tree is used as erosion control in coastal areas. Other benefits such as paper pulp, woodworking tools, shelter and shade, ornamental plants, clearing and improving the soil. Because of its ability to produce nitrogen, is widely used in agroforestry.
Botanical descriptions 
Evergreen tree 6-35 m high, subsp. small incana. Canopy Light. Bark gray, light brown, rough and furrowed on old trees. Circle lenticels apparent in young skin. Drooping branches, like a needle, very small, small leaves arranged in 7-8 strands.

Flowers unisexual, male and female flowers can be found in a tree or trees are different. The male flowers are located at the tip, elongated grains, the female flowers on lateral branches. Cone composed of female flowers, rounded, 10-24 mm long, 9-13 mm in diameter.


The fruit and seeds
 
Fruit yellow-gray or brown (Samara), 6-8 mm long, single seed. One kg of potato seeds produced 20-60 g. It 370.000-700-000 clean seed per kg.
Flowering and fruiting 
Wind pollination. In areas where the winter or dry is not real, flowers and fruits regularly, once or twice a year. In areas with dry and rainy seasons are not real, flowering and fruiting, and may tend to be irregular throughout the year.

Mature female cones 18-20 weeks after anthesis and then reopened briefly, releasing small fruits. The fruit is not ripe simultaneously in a single tree, causing problems in collecting fruit.


Fruit harvest 

Mature seeds when cones are yellow and slightly open. brown skin and seeds of some hard endosperm.
Sowing and germination 
Propagation by seed or cuttings. In the nursery, seeds can dikecambahkan in beds or trays filled with sand or a mixture of sand and moss. Germination is generally completed within two weeks.
Pups were weaned at 10-15 cm and is ready for planting after the height reaches 50-70 cm at the age of 5-8 months. Overwatering can cause wet. Shadow 50% consists of seedlings ready for planting. Plants from a height of 10-15 cm seedbeds can be weaned at an open plot with a distance of 10 x 10 cm to stimulate root growth. Soil containing mycorrhizae and Frankia (nitrogen-producing fungi Casuarina) of pine stands included in the pot. The potential production of N2 can be improved by using selected clones of Frankia infected.

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