Terminalia cherrieri

The Terminalia cherrieri is a endemic species of New Caledonia of the family of the Combretaceae . There exist 6 species of the even kind, of which the Badamier, well-known of the Calédonie NS.

Description

Aspect and general form

One counts it among the large trees of the forest dries calédonienne. It has a staged port (the branches, horizontal, are laid out the ones above the others, like the floors of a building). Its large branches and its sheets train a bulky houppier. The trunk is quite right.

Cut

The tree can measure 15m top. The trunk does not exceed 6-7 meters in height but can measure until 60 cm in diameter.

Bark

Hard and rough, of beige color clearly, the bark is slightly fissured. Plates are detached from the bark by place.

Sheet S

The sheets are narrow and widen towards the top. They generally measure 6cm of length and 3 cm broad. Of dark color green on the top and the lower part of the sheet, the vein is of red color yellow. The sheets are grouped in tufts at the end of the branches. Each year, in fresh season, the sheets redden before falling. But the tree remains naked only a few days, because at once the buds give rise to new sheets.

Fleur S

The flowers are very small and of white color. They have the shape of a rinse-bottle.

Reproduction

The Floraison takes place in hot season and the fruits are formed about August. Its winged fruits, of color chestnut, are dispersed by the wind. The seeds are often eaten by worms parasite S and they put much time to germinate.

Place in the forest dries

Very rare, this tree pushes only on the black grounds of the literal zone in the area of Poya. Its roots are rather surface and can extend until several meters from the trunk. It is used by the stockbreeders to provide shade to the cattle. Terminalia cherrieri was described in 1984. Its name pays homage to Jean-François Cherrier, forest calédonien, director of CIRAD forest, accidentally deceased in 1991. The forest sheltering this species today was destroyed with the beginning of the year 1980. Today remain only a few isolated feet, very sensitive to the attacks of Insecte S and to the variations climatic and being able to disappear quickly.

External bonds

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