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bunya pine
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bunya pine
bunya pine Bunya pine (Araucaria bidwillii).

bunya pine

plant
Also known as: Araucaria bidwillii, bunya bunya
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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
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Also called:
bunya bunya

bunya pine, (Araucaria bidwillii), large evergreen conifer of the family Araucariaceae, native to humid areas in southeastern Queensland, Australia. The saplings are sold as houseplants in many areas, and the cream-coloured wood is used for veneers, plywood, and boxes. The tree’s large sweet seeds were traditionally roasted and eaten by Australian Aboriginal peoples. Despite its common name, the plant is not a true pine.

The bunya pine grows to heights of 30 metres (100 feet) or more and is notable for the symmetrical structure of its branches and its immense dome-shaped leafy crown. The bark is thick and resinous. The female cones can weigh up to 18 kg (40 pounds) and disintegrate when mature to release the large seeds. The seeds have an unusual germination strategy in which the emerging root develops into a tuber from which the sprout later grows. Known as cryptogeal germination, it is thought that this adaptation may protect against wildfires and allows the young plants to emerge when conditions are suitable.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.
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conifer
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giant sequoia conifer heights Monterey pine lodgepole pine Wind pollination Douglas fir Plate 4: Fleshy red appendages of fruits of the yew (Taxus), which attract birds. trees, deciduous and coniferous
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conifer summary
Quizzes
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giant sequoia
giant sequoia A giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) estimated to be between 1,900 and 2,400 years old, Grizzly Giant is the oldest tree in the Mariposa Grove, Yosemite National Park, California.

conifer

plant
Also known as: Coniferophyta
Written by
James Emory Eckenwalder
Associate Professor of Botany, University of Toronto.
James Emory Eckenwalder
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History
conifer heights
conifer heightsThe heights of selected conifers and a highlight of the needle-and-cone configuration of the Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga).

conifer, any member of the division Pinophyta, class Pinopsida, order Pinales, made up of living and fossil gymnospermous plants that usually have needle-shaped evergreen leaves and seeds attached to the scales of a woody bracted cone. Among living gymnosperm divisions, the conifers show little similarity to the Cycadophyta and Gnetophyta but share several vegetative and reproductive traits with the Ginkgophyta. Conifers are most abundant in cool temperate and boreal regions, where they are important timber trees and ornamentals, but they are most diverse in warmer areas, including tropical mountains.

General features

Diversity of size and structure

The conifers are the most varied gymnosperms. The world’s oldest trees are the 5,000-year-old bristlecone pines (Pinus longaeva) of desert mountains in California and Nevada. The largest trees are the giant sequoias (Sequoiadendron giganteum) of the Sierra Nevada of California, reaching heights of more than 95 metres (312 feet) and weights of at least 2 million kilograms (4.4 million pounds; compared with 190,000 kilograms for the largest recorded blue whale). Wherever conifers grow, especially in temperate climates, one of these species is usually the tallest tree. In fact, the very tallest trees are the coast redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) of coastal California, some of which are more than 110 metres (361 feet) tall.

The world’s smallest trees probably are also conifers: the natural bonsai cypresses (Cupressus goveniana) and lodgepole pines (Pinus contorta) of the pygmy forests (adjacent to the towering redwood forests) of the northern California coasts. On the sterile hardpan soils of those astounding forests, the trees may reach full maturity at under 0.2 metre (0.7 foot) in height, while individuals of the same species on richer, deeper soils can grow to more than 30 metres (98 feet). Other conifers, such as the pygmy pine (Lepidothamnus laxifolius) of New Zealand, the smallest conifer, are always shrubby and may mature as shorter plants (less than 8 centimetres [3.15 inches] in height) than the pygmy cypress, but with greater spread.

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