Gamble fir

Description

Abies pindrow var. brevifolia ( Dallim. & ABJacks. 1923 ), is a natural variety of A. pindrow belonging tothe Pinaceae family, endemic to Garhwal and Chamba, in the Himalayan mountainsof Kashmir, India. The generic name Abies, already used by the Latins, could, according to an etymological interpretation, derive from the Greek word ἄβιος = long-lived. The specific name pindrow was coined by John Forbes Royle in assonance with the common name of this fir in the Simla region. The epithet brevifolia derives from the Latin words brévis = short and folium = leaf, referring to the shorter needles than the nominal species. This variety differs from A. pindrow for the shorter needles (2,5-3,8 cm long), arranged radially and not comb-like, with obtuse apex; sometimes stomata appear on the upper face.They are needles up to 3.8 cm long, radially arranged on the upper part of the vegetative branches, of dark green color, with lines of stomata on the upper face, and two white stripes on the lower face.They are female cones 5.5-10 cm long, ovoid or oblong-ovoid, of a grayish-blue color then purple when ripe; the bracts are hidden. In its vegetative range it is locally common at altitudes between 3000 and 3500 m, on calcareous rocky soils, in association with Picea smithiana, Pinus wallichiana, Taxus contorta, Betula utilis and Quercus leucotrichophora.