Chamaecyparis obtusa
Channel: all the knowledge of the universe PRINCIPIA
Date: 2022-01-09

Chamaecyparis obtusa, by Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki?curid=1004103 / CC BY SA 3.0

#IUCN_Red_List_near_threatened_species
#Chamaecyparis
#Endemic_flora_of_Japan
#Trees_of_Japan
#Five_sacred_trees_of_Kiso
#Near_threatened_flora_of_Asia
#Garden_plants_of_Asia
#Plants_used_in_bonsai
#Ornamental_trees
Chamaecyparis obtusa （Japanese cypress, hinoki cypress or hinoki; Japanese: 檜 or 桧, hinoki） is a species of cypress native to central
Japan in East Asia, and widely cultivated in the temperate northern hemisphere for its high quality timber and ornamental qualities,
with many cultivars commercially available.
It is a slow-growing tree which may reach 35 m （115 ft） tall with a trunk up to 1 m （3 ft 3 in） in diameter.
The bark is dark red-brown.
The leaves are scale-like, 2–4 mm （0.079–0.157 in） long, blunt tipped （obtuse）, green above, and green below with a white stomatal band at the base of each scale-leaf.
The cones are globose, 8–12 mm （0.31–0.47 in） in diameter, with 8–12 scales arranged in opposite pairs.
The plant is widespread in Japan.
The related Chamaecyparis pisifera （sawara cypress） can be readily distinguished in its having pointed tips to the leaves and smaller cones.
A similar cypress found on Taiwan is treated by different botanists as either a variety of this species （as Chamaecyparis obtusa var. formosana）
or as a separate species Chamaecyparis taiwanensis; it differs in having smaller cones （6–9 mm diameter） with smaller scales,
and leaves with a more acute apex.
It is grown for its very high quality timber in Japan, where it is used as a material for building palaces, temples, shrines, traditional noh theatres, baths, table tennis blades and masu.
The wood is lemon-scented, light pinkish-brown, with a rich, straight grain, and is highly rot-resistant.
For example, Horyuji Temple and Osaka Castle are built from hinoki wood.
The hinoki grown in Kiso, used for building Ise Shrine, are called 御神木 go-shin-boku, or "divine trees".
It is also a pop...