92 A HANDBOOK OF CONIFERS 



Abies cephalonica, Loudon. (Fig. 27.) 

 Grecian Fir. 



Abies panachaica, Heldreich ; A. Luscombiana, Loudon ; A. pelopon- 

 nesiaca, Haage ; A. Reginae-Amaliae, Heldreich ; Picea cephalonica, 

 Loudon ; Pinus Abies, var. cephalonica, Parlatore. P. cei^halonica, 

 Endlicher. 



A tree about 100 ft. high and 9-15 ft. in girth. Barh greyish- 

 brown, smooth on young trees, becoming fissured into oblong 

 plates on old trunks. Young shoots smooth, light brown, without 

 down. Buds conical or ovoid, resinous, the scales prominent 

 at the tips. Leaves spreading more or less all round the shoot, 

 but more numerous on the upper side where they are more or less 

 erect, those of the upper ranks shorter than those beneath ; 

 flattened, curved, about 1 in. long, ts-tV in. wide, abruptly 

 tapering at the base, ending in a sharp, horny point ; upper 

 surface shining green, grooved, with a few broken lines of stomata 

 near the apex ; lower surface with two white bands of stomata 

 separated by a green ridge ; resin canals marginal. Cones 

 about 6 in. long by 1| in. in diameter, cylindrical, brownish, with 

 golden-brown reflexed bracts ending in a triangular point, 

 protruding between the narrowly fan-shaped scales. Seed with 

 a wing about 1 in. long. 



Var. ApoUinis, Beissner. 



Abies Apollinis, Link. 



Differing from the type in the irregular arrangement of the 

 leaves which stand crowded on the upper side of the shoot, those 

 on the lower side curving upwards. Leaves thicker and broader 

 than in the typical form, with acute, not acuminate, points. 

 It appears to be connected with the type by intermediate forms. 



A. cejjJialonica is a native of the higher mountains of Greece 

 between 2,700 and 5,700 ft. elevation. On Mount Enos inCepha- 

 lonia there was formerly a forest of this fir 12-15 miles in length 

 and thirty-six miles round, but its area has been much reduced 

 by fires. 



The Grecian fir was introduced into cultivation by General 

 Sir Charles Napier, who sent seeds to England in 1824. 



Wood very similar to that of A. pectinata, but it has no com- 

 mercial value outside its native country. 



In the British Isles this species is only planted for decorative 

 purposes. It gives the best results in moist but not water-logged 

 soil in the cooler and moister parts of the country. 



Elwes and Henry, Trees of Great Brit, and Irel., iv, 739 (1909). 



