Flaky Fir

Description

Abies squamata is a species of conifer in the Pinaceae family. This fir is common in the Southeast of the Tibetan Plateau (China) in an altitude from 3200 m to tree-line in 4400 m. It is dominant on North-facing slopes and often grows with Balfour's spruce, Picea balfouriana. Government sector logging that was rampant until the logging ban in 1998 reduced fir stands significantly. Reforestation after the ban was dominated by spruce, since Abies squamata is susceptible to stem rot and thus shunned by the state forest bureaus (Ryavec & Winkler 2009). Undergrowth is most commonly dominated by members of the genus Rhododendron. Local Tibetans know this fir as "bollo", but that term is a general term for firs and spruces.