Keteleeria is a genus of three species of coniferous trees in the family Pinaceae, related to the genera Nothotsuga and Pseudolarix. It is distinguished from Nothotsuga by the much larger cones, and from Pseudolarix by the evergreen leaves and the cones not disintegrating readily at maturity. All three genera share the unusual feature of male cones produced in umbels of several together from a single bud, and also in their ability, very rare in the Pinaceae, of being able to coppice. Orders & Families Cordaitales † Pinales   Pinaceae - Pine family   Araucariaceae - Araucaria family   Podocarpaceae - Yellow-wood family   Sciadopityaceae - Umbrella-pine family   Cupressaceae - Cypress family   Cephalotaxaceae - Plum-yew family   Taxaceae - Yew family Vojnovskyales † Voltziales † The conifers, division Pinophyta, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. ... The coniferous Coast Redwood, the tallest tree species on earth A tree can be defined as a large, perennial, woody plant. ... Genera Subfamily Pinoideae     Pinus - pines (about 115 species) Subfamily Piceoideae     Picea - spruces (about 35 species) Subfamily Laricoideae     Cathaya (one species)     Larix - larches (about 14 species)     Pseudotsuga - douglas-firs (five species) Subfamily Abietoideae     Abies - firs (about 50 species)     Cedrus - cedars (two to four species)     Pseudolarix - golden larch (one species)     Keteleeria (three... Binomial name Pseudolarix amabilis (Nelson) Rehder Pseudolarix is a monotypic genus in the family Pinaceae. ... A cone (in formal botanical usage: strobilus, plural strobili) is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta (conifers) that contains the reproductive structures. ... A Silver Fir shoot showing three successive years of retained leaves In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant which retains its leaves year-round, with each leaf persisting for more than 12 months. ... In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant organ specialized for photosynthesis. ... Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management, by which young tree stems are cut down to a foot or less from ground level. ...

The genus is found in southern China (from Shaanxi south to Guangdong and Yunnan), Taiwan, northern Laos and Vietnam. Not to be confused with the neighboring province of Shanxi Shaanxi (Simplified Chinese: 陕西; Traditional Chinese: 陝西; pinyin: Shǎnxī; Wade-Giles: Shan-hsi; Postal System Pinyin: Shensi, pronounced like Shahn-shee) is a northwestern province of the Peoples Republic of China, and includes portions of the Loess Plateau on... Guangdong (Simplified Chinese: 广东; Traditional Chinese: 廣東; pinyin: Guǎngdōng; Wade-Giles: Kuang-tung; Kwangtung in older transliteration; Cantonese: gwong2 dung1), is a province on the south coast of the Peoples Republic of China. ... Yunnan (Simplified Chinese: 云南; Traditional Chinese: 雲南; pinyin: ) is a province of the Peoples Republic of China, located in the far southwestern corner of the country. ...

They are evergreen trees reaching 35 m tall. The leaves are flat, needle-like, 1.5-7 cm long and 2-4 mm broad. The cones are erect, 6-22 cm long, and mature in about 6-8 months after pollination; cone size and scale shape is very variable within all three species.

The variability of the cones has led in the past to the description of several additional species (up to 16 'species' have been named), but most authorities now only accept three species. For a different viewpoint, see the Flora of China link below.

External links

• Arboretum de Villardebelle - photos of cones (http://www.pinetum.org/cones/PIcones.htm)
• Gymnosperm Database (http://www.botanik.uni-bonn.de/conifers/pi/ke/index.htm)
• Flora of China (http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=117075)