The screen of every garden or park justifying its beauty is done by yellow wood plants or Podocarpus species. These are the most widely spread family of Podocarpaceae. They belongs sot the genus Conifers. These are evergreen shrubs or small trees. They are widely used as ornamental plants for parks, gardens, and roadsides.
The name Podocarpus is derived from a Greek language. ‘Podus’ means foot and ‘karpous’ means fruit. The family of Podocarpus, that is Podocarpaceae consists of 97 to 107 species. They are commonly called ‘yellow-wood’ or ‘pine’.
Podocarpus Dispersion
Podocarpus are the most widely distributed Podocarp family. The plant is native to Africa, Asia, Australia, Central and Southern America, and many Pacific Islands. In ancient times it was endemic to Africa, South America, India, and New Zealand for some time about 105 to 45 million years. It is also known as Antarctic flora.
Illustration
These are evergreen woody plants. Their height ranges from 3 ft to 82 ft (that is 1 to 25 m). It can reach up to a maximum height of 40 m. The primary branches are called pseudo whorls. Pseudo-whorls is the whorling of leaves around the main trunk. The bark of the plants of this family is characterized by scaly and fibrous texture.
The terminal buds of the plant are mostly distinctive by bud scales. The leaves of the plant are simple and flattened by an arrangement of leaves or phyllotaxy to spiral. The plants of this family are mostly dioecious that is male reproductive parts pollen found in male cones and female reproductive parts, and seeds found in female cone lies on two different plants. Few exceptional plant species of family are monoecious.
The seed cones consist of 2-5 scales. These scale fuses to form fleshly berry fruit on maturity. Those cones having 1 scale are considered to be sterile. The cone fruits are mostly red, pink, or bluish in color. These colorful and fruity beery-like fruits attract birds and insects. This helps in the dispersion of seeds by the birds and insects.
Sensitivity of Podocarpus
Podocarpus is highly sensitive and causes extreme allergies. The pollen grains of the plants rate 10/10 on the OPAL (Ogren Plant Allergy) rating scale. The female cone rates 1/10 on the OPAL scale. Thus it is called an ‘allergy fighting’ cone.
The stem, leaves, flowers, and pollen of the plant are toxic. They are cytotoxic which causes harm to cells. The side effects of cytotoxicity of plant result in damage similarly caused by chemotherapy.
Classification of Podocarpaceae
The family Podocarpaceae is divided into two subgroups:
- Podocarpus
- Foliolatus
The difference between both of them are as follows:
Characteristics for differentiation | Podocarpus | Foliolatus |
| Morphology of cone | The cone is not attached by lanceolate bracts. | The cone is attached by two lanceolate bracts called ‘foliola’. |
| Structure of seed | Apical ridge are present in the seed. | Apical ridges are absent in the seed. |
| Forest Types | Temperate Forest | Tropical and Sub-tropical Forests |
| Native Places | Tasmania, New Zealand, Southern part of Chile | Asia, Malaysia and Australia |
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/podocarpus-macrophyllus-var-maki/
Utilization
These plants have been useful since ancient times. They are used for a variety of purposes. Some of its important utilization are as follows:
- In ancient times, during the Middle Stone Age Podocarpus were used as adhesive distillation.
- They are used as screens and hedges in many gardens and parks across the world.
- The red, purple, and bluish fleshy fruits are edible in both raw and cooked way.
- The fruits or the ripened cones of the plants are used in the making of jams and pies.
- They has been traditionally used as medicine for diseases like fever, cough, arthritis, Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), and eye infections.
- Leukaemia chemical which is used in chemotherapy is obtained from the plants.
- They are also used in ornamental plantations.
- They are used in avenue plantations. These are planted in institutional gardens and industrial gardens. This helps in improving the climatic conditions of that area by improving the quality of air and bringing the temperature.
Distribution of Podocarpus
Distribution of varieties of Podocarpus plant species all around the world :
Podocarpus | Eastern and Southern Africa · P. elongatus · P. latifolius · P. milanjianus |
| Madagascar, eastern Africa · P. carpuronii · P. henkelii · P. humbertii · P. madagascariensis · P. rostratus | |
| Southeast Australia, New Zealand, Southern Chile · P. alpinus · P. gnidioides · P. laetus · P. lawrencei · P. nivalis · P. nubigenus · P. totara | |
| Northeast Queensland · P. smithii | |
| Central Chile, Southern Brazil, the Andes · P. aracensis · P. glomeratus · P. lambertii · P. parlatorei · P. salignus · P. sellowii · P. sprucei · P. transiens | |
| Southeast Mexico · P. oleifolius · P. pendulifolius · P. tepuiensis | |
| Southeast Asia · P. brassii · P. brevifolius · P. costalis · P. crassigemmis · P. tixieri | |
Foliolatus | Northeast Australia · P. subtropicalis · P. ridleyi · P. polystachyus · P. macrophyllus · P. macarpus · P. fasciculus |
Areas of Nepal, Sumatra, the Philippines and New Guinea
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Central and northern South America
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New Britain, Borneo
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Final Remarks
Podocarpus are the most widely and densely popular plants. There is a variety of species useful in various industries. The plant species fulfill the requirement of raw materials from small industries to large industries. They are also a part of the cosmetic and food industry. They are widely cultivated as well as used for prenatal and avenue purposes. They are highly in demand in decorative and recreational industries. They serve the purpose of hedges and screens in gardens and parks. This help in improving the environmental conditions of the surrounding. The right to these plant species in the right ways will be helpful in the development of a better future.
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