Conifers are widely-diverse and attractive evergreen trees (pines trees) that have immense ecological importance on Earth. They are woody plants with secondary growth, producing an eclectic variety of yields like seeds, flowers, fruit, and more. The softwood obtained from them is of huge economic value, giving us paper, timber, and even plastic. About 45% of the world’s lumber comes from evergreens. Needless to say, they are highly-beneficial pine trees with even more interesting facts to learn about them.
An Ancient Tree
The word “confiner” comes from the Latin, “conus”, meaning “cone”, and “ferre”, meaning “to bear.” These words refer to the pine cones that conifer trees produce in the late summer and early fall. Coniferous fossils have been found that date back as far as 300 million years ago during the Paleozoic period. They are known as one of the most ancient species of tree on the planet. In fact, the tallest, densest, and oldest living trees on Earth are all conifers!
Structure and Foliage
Coniferous trees retain their foliage and stay green all year long. Most have a similar structure: a single straight trunk with side-reaching branches. They have their own built in first-aid kit and pest deterrent as well, known as resin. This resin, or sap, gives evergreen trees their distinct piney scent; but more importantly, the sap protects open wounds against fungal infection, and fends off nuisance pests. Their foliage is made up of needles, rather than leaves you see on deciduous trees (with the exception of Lawless Cypress and other Cupressaceous species). These needles shed once per year, but not before turning a bright orange or yellow first.
Types of Conifer Trees
There are several types of coniferous trees, including Cedars, Redwoods, Hemlocks, Spruces, Firs, and more. They are in the kingdom of Plantae, the Division of Pinophyta (also known as Coniferophyta or Coniferae), the Class Pinopsida, the Order of Cordaitales (or Pinales), and finally, the Family of Pine. Here are some of the most common and well-known conifer trees we treasure so dearly:
- African Juniper
- Alaska Cedar
- Aleppo Pine
- Alligator Juniper
- Arborvitae
- Arborvitae
- Atlantic White Cedar
- Atlas Cedar
- Austrian Pine
- Bald Cypress
- Balsam Fir
- Bhutan Pine
- Black Pine
- Black Spruce
- Blue Spruce
- Bristlecone Pine
- Bunge’s Pine
- Bunya Pine
- California Foothill Pine
- California Red Fir
- Canaan Fir
- Canada Yew
- Carolina Hemlock
- Caucasian Fir
- Cedar
- Cedar-Of-Lebanon
- Chilgoza Pine
- Chinese Fir
- Chinese Juniper
- Cipres De Guaitecas
- Common Juniper
- Corkbark Fir
- Cui Bai
- Cypress
- Dawn Redwood
- Deodar Cedar
- Douglas Fir
- Eastern Hemlock
- Eastern Red Cedar
- Eastern White Pine
- Engelmann Spruce
- English Yew
- European Larch
- Fir
- Florida Nutmeg
- Florida Yew
- Foxtail Pine
- Fraser Fir
- Giant Sequoia
- Grand Fir
- Grecian Fir
- Hartweg Pine
- Hemlock
- Hinoki False Cypress
- Honduras Pine
- Incense-Cedar
- Indian Juniper
- Italian Cypress
- Jack Pine
- Japanese Black Pine
- Japanese Cedar
- Japanese Fir
- Japanese Larch
- Japanese Red Pine
- Japanese Yew
- Jeffrey Pine
- Juniper Juniperus
- Khasia Pine
- Knob Cone Pine
- Korean Fir
- Larch
- Leyland Cypress
- Limber Pine
- Loblolly Pine
- Lodge Pole Pine
- Longleaf Pine
- Manchurian Fir
- Maritime Pine
- Mason Pine
- Mexican Cypress/Cedar of Goa
- Microbiota
- Monkey Puzzle Tree
- Monterey Cypress
- Monterey Pine
- Montezuma Bald Cypress
- Moreton Bay Pine
- Mountain Hemlock
- Mugo Pine
- New Caledonia Pine
- Nikko Fir
- Norfolk Island Pine
- Norway Spruce
- Ocote Pine
- One Seed Juniper
- Orchids
- Oriental Arborvitae
- Oriental Spruce
- Pacific Yew
- Parana Pine
- Patagonian Cypress
- Patula Pine
- Pitch Pine
- Plum Pine
- Pond Cypress
- Ponderosa Pine
- Port Orford Cedar
- Red Pine
- Red Spruce
- Redwood
- Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir
- Rocky Mountain Juniper
- Sacred Fir
- Sand Pine
- Sargent Juniper
- Scots Pine
- Serbian Spruce
- Shortleaf Pine
- Siberian Larch
- Silver Fir
- Single Leaf Pinyon
- Sitka Spruce
- Slash Pine
- Southwestern White Pine
- Spruce
- Spruce Pine
- Subalpine Fir
- Subalpine Fir
- Sugar Pine
- Swiss Stone Pine
- Table Mountain Pine
- Tall Lodge Pole Pine
- Tamarack
- Torrey Pine
- Turkish Pine
- Two Needle Pinyon
- Utah Juniper
- Virginia Pine
- Western Hemlock
- Western Juniper
- Western Juniper
- Western Larch
- Western Red Cedar
- Western White Pine
- White Cypress-Pine
- White Fir
- White Fir
- White Spruce
- White Bark Pine
- Yew
- Yew Plum Pine
Call a professional Fishers Tree Service Company for help managing your conifer trees!