Pterocarya fraxinifolia

Pterocarya fraxinifolia is a species of tree in the Juglandaceae family. It is commonly known as the Caucasian wingnut or Caucasian walnut. It is native to the Caucasian region Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Russia, Ukraine and Turkey. It was introduced to France in 1784, and to Great Britain after 1800.[2]

Pterocarya fraxinifolia
Characteristic fruits of Caucasian wingnut
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Juglandaceae
Genus: Pterocarya
Species:
P. fraxinifolia
Binomial name
Pterocarya fraxinifolia
(Lam.) Spach
Synonyms
  • Juglans fraxinifolia Lam.
  • Pterocarya caucasica C.A.Mey.
  • Pterocarya pterocarpa (Michx.) Kunth

Description
Caucasian wingnut tree

The tree is monoecious and grows to a height of < 30 m, the short, thick bole supporting widely spreading branches to form a rounded structure, not unlike the wych elm. The pinnate leaves can exceed 60 cm in length, comprising 7 - 27 sessile leaflets. The flowers appear in April, the male catkins thick and green, 7.5 – 12.5 cm long, the females longer with less dense flowers, bearing red styles forming fruiting catkins 30 – 50 cm long, the green, winged, nuts approximately 1.8 cm wide.[3]

Ecology

The species is fast growing and grows best on flat ground or shallow slopes near river banks and in deep moist soils. The climate associated with the distribution of this tree includes mild winters and mild humid summers. It generally grows in mixed stands with other species and rarely grows in pure stands.[4]

Fossil record

Fossils of Pterocarya fraxinifolia have been described from the fossil flora of Kızılcahamam district in Turkey, which is of early Pliocene age.[5]

References
  1. Firsov, G.A. 1998. Pterocarya pterocarpa. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 23 August 2007.
  2. "Caucasian Wingnut – Keele University Arboretum". Retrieved 2010-10-21.
  3. Phillips, R. (1978). Trees in Britain, Europe & North America. Pan Books, London.
  4. Sheykholislami, A; T. Ahmadi (2009). "The Study of Caucasian Walnut (Pterocarya frexinifolia (Lam.) Spach.) in Forests of Mashelak (Noshahr, Iran)" (PDF). Botany Research Journal. 2 (2): 28–33.
  5. Kasaplıgil, B.-(1975): Pliocene Flora of Güvem village near Ankara, Turkey, Abstracts of the Papers Presented at the XII International Botanical Congress, Akademika Nauk SSSR, 1: 115, Leningrad


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