Cedrus deodara

It is a large evergreen coniferous tree reaching {{convert|40|-|50|m|0|abbr=off}} tall, exceptionally {{convert|60|m|0|abbr=on}} with a trunk up to {{convert|3|m|0|abbr=on}} in diameter. It has a conic crown with level branches and drooping branchlets.{{cite book |first=Farjon |last=Aljos |year=1990 |title=Pinaceae: drawings and descriptions of the genera Abies, Cedrus, Pseudolarix, Keteleeria, Nothotsuga, Tsuga, Cathaya, Pseudotsuga, Larix and Picea |location=Koenigstein |publisher=Koeltz Scientific Books |isbn=978-3-87429-298-6}}{{page needed|date=September 2013}}

The leaves are needle-like, mostly {{convert|2.5|–|5|cm|abbr=off|frac=4}} long, occasionally up to {{convert|7|cm|abbr=on|frac=2}} long, slender ({{convert|1|mm|abbr=out|disp=or|frac=32}} thick), borne singly on long shoots, and in dense clusters of 20–30 on short shoots; they vary from bright green to glaucous blue-green in colour. The female cones are barrel-shaped, {{convert|7|–|13|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} long and {{convert|5|–|9|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} broad, and disintegrate when mature (in 12 months) to release the winged seeds. The male cones are {{convert|4|–|6|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} long, and shed their pollen in autumn.

{{gallery|mode=packed

|Cedrus deodara India14.jpg|Young tree in India

|Cedrus deodara India17.jpg|Older tree in India

|Cedrus deodara 7zz.jpg|Trunk

|Cedrus deodara leaves closeup.jpg|Close-up of leaves

|20130903Cedrus deodara2.jpg|Leaves and female cone

|2018-06-24. Шишка 02.jpg|Top view of cone

}}

The bark of Cedrus deodara contains large amounts of taxifolin.{{cite journal |doi=10.1515/HF.2009.095 |title=Extractives in bark of different conifer species growing in Pakistan |year=2009 |last1=Willför |first1=Stefan |last2=Ali |first2=Mumtaz |last3=Karonen |first3=Maarit |last4=Reunanen |first4=Markku |last5=Arfan |first5=Mohammad |last6=Harlamow |first6=Reija |journal=Holzforschung |volume=63 |issue=5 |pages=551–8|s2cid=97003177 }} The wood contains cedeodarin, ampelopsin, cedrin, cedrinoside,{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/0031-9422(80)85133-8 |title=Dihydroflavonols from Cedrus deodara |year=1980 |last1=Agrawal |first1=P.K. |last2=Agarwal |first2=S.K. |last3=Rastogi |first3=R.P. |journal=Phytochemistry |volume=19 |issue=5 |pages=893–6}} and deodarin (3′,4′,5,6-tetrahydroxy-8-methyl dihydroflavonol).{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/S0040-4020(01)96989-3 |title=Chemical investigation of the stem-bark of Cedrus deodara |year=1965 |last1=Adinarayana |first1=D. |last2=Seshadri |first2=T.R. |journal=Tetrahedron |volume=21 |issue=12 |pages=3727–30}} The main components of the needle essential oil include α-terpineol (30.2%), linalool (24.47%), limonene (17.01%), anethole (14.57%), caryophyllene (3.14%), and eugenol (2.14%).{{cite journal |doi=10.1111/j.1750-3841.2012.02767.x |title=Chemical Composition, Antioxidant, and Antimicrobial Activities of Essential Oil from Pine Needle (Cedrus deodara) |year=2012 |last1=Zeng |first1=Wei-Cai |last2=Zhang |first2=Zeng |last3=Gao |first3=Hong |last4=Jia |first4=Li-Rong |last5=He |first5=Qiang |journal=Journal of Food Science |volume=77 |issue=7 |pages=C824–9 |pmid=22757704}} The deodar cedar also contains lignans{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/0031-9422(82)80172-6 |title=Two lignans from Cedrus deodara |year=1982 |last1=Agrawal |first1=P.K. |last2=Rastogi |first2=R.P. |journal=Phytochemistry |volume=21 |issue=6 |pages=1459–1461}} and the phenolic sesquiterpene himasecolone, together with isopimaric acid.{{cite journal |doi=10.1016/0031-9422(81)80031-3 |title=Terpenoids from Cedrus deodara |year=1981 |last1=Agarwal |first1=P.K. |last2=Rastogi |first2=R.P. |journal=Phytochemistry |volume=20 |issue=6 |pages=1319–21}} Other compounds have been identified, including (−)-matairesinol, (−)-nortrachelogenin, and a dibenzylbutyrolactollignan (4,4',9-trihydroxy-3,3'-dimethoxy-9,9'-epoxylignan).{{cite journal |pmid=11600001 |year=2001 |last1=Tiwari |first1=AK |last2=Srinivas |first2=PV |last3=Kumar |first3=SP |last4=Rao |first4=JM |title=Free radical scavenging active components from Cedrus deodara |volume=49 |issue=10 |pages=4642–5 |journal=Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry |doi=10.1021/jf010573a}}

The botanical name, which is also the English common name, is derived from the Sanskrit term devadāru, which means "wood of the gods", a compound of deva "god" and dāru "wood and tree".{{Cite journal |last1=Shinde |first1=U. A. |last2=Phadke |first2=A. S. |last3=Nair |first3=A. M. |last4=Mungantiwar |first4=A. A. |last5=Dikshit |first5=V. J. |last6=Saraf |first6=M. N. |date=1999-06-01 |title=Membrane stabilizing activity — a possible mechanism of action for the anti-inflammatory activity of Cedrus deodara wood oil |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0367326X99000301 |journal=Fitoterapia |language=en |volume=70 |issue=3 |pages=251–257 |doi=10.1016/S0367-326X(99)00030-1 |issn=0367-326X}}{{Cite journal |last=Mehta |first=Devanssh |date=2012-01-01 |title=An insight into traditional system of medicine |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344187319}}

File:Cedrus deodara India24.jpg, India]]

The species natively occurs in East-Afghanistan, South Western Tibet, Western Nepal, Northern Pakistan, and North-Central India.{{Cite journal |last1=Kumar |first1=Avadhesh |last2=Singh |first2=Vandana |last3=Chaudhary |first3=Amrendra Kumar |date=2011-03-24 |title=Gastric antisecretory and antiulcer activities of Cedrus deodara (Roxb.) Loud. in Wistar rats |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378874110008950 |journal=Journal of Ethnopharmacology |language=en |volume=134 |issue=2 |pages=294–297 |doi=10.1016/j.jep.2010.12.019 |pmid=21182918 |issn=0378-8741}}

It grows at altitudes of {{convert|1500|-|3200|m|-3|abbr=on}}.

“Deodar is a wind-pollinated monoecious species”.Sharma, C. M., & Khanduri, V. P. (2011). Pollen cone characteristics, pollen yield and pollen-mediated gene flow in Cedrus deodara. Current Science (Bangalore), 102(3), 394–397

It is widely grown as an ornamental tree, often planted in parks and large gardens for its drooping foliage. General cultivation is limited to areas with mild winters, with trees frequently killed by temperatures below about {{convert|-25|C|F}}, limiting it to USDA zone 7 and warmer for reliable growth.{{cite book |last=Ødum |first=S. |year=1985 |title=Report on frost damage to trees in Denmark after the severe 1981/82 and 1984/85 winters |publisher=Hørsholm Arboretum |location=Denmark}}{{page needed|date=September 2013}} It can succeed in rather cool-summer climates, as in Ushuaia, Argentina.{{cite web |url=http://treesneartheirlimits.blogspot.ca/ |title = Trees Near Their Limits}}

The most cold-tolerant trees originate in the northwest of the species' range in Kashmir and Paktia Province, Afghanistan. Selected cultivars from this region are hardy to USDA zone 7 or even zone 6, tolerating temperatures down to about {{convert|-30|C|F}}. Named cultivars from this region include 'Eisregen', 'Eiswinter', 'Karl Fuchs', 'Kashmir', 'Polar Winter', and 'Shalimar'.{{cite book |first1=Welch|last1=Humphrey James |editor1-last=Haddows |editor1-first=Gordon |year=1993 |title=The World Checklist of Conifers |location=Bromyard |publisher=Landsman's Bookshop |isbn=978-0-900513-09-1}}{{cite book |first=Krüssmann |last=Gerd |year=1983 |title=Handbuch der Nadelgehölze |edition=2nd |location=Berlin |publisher=Parey |isbn=978-3-489-62622-0 |language=de}}{{page needed|date=September 2013}} Of these, 'Eisregen', 'Eiswinter', 'Karl Fuchs', and 'Polar Winter' were selected in Germany from seed collected in Paktia; 'Kashmir' was a selection of the nursery trade, whereas 'Shalimar' originated from seeds collected in 1964 from Shalimar Gardens, Kashmir and propagated at the Arnold Arboretum.

C. deodara{{cite web

| url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/3295/i-Cedrus-deodara-i/Details

|title = RHS Plantfinder - Cedrus deodar

| publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date=21 January 2018}} and the three cultivars 'Feelin' Blue',{{cite web

| url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/62081/i-Cedrus-deodara-i-Feelin-Blue/Details

|title = RHS Plantfinder - Cedrus deodara 'Feelin' Blue'

| publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date=21 January 2018}} 'Pendula'{{cite web

| url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/91507/Cedrus-deodara-Pendula/Details

|title = RHS Plantfinder - Cedrus deodara 'Pendula'

| publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date=15 June 2021}} and 'Aurea'{{cite web

| url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/93375/i-Cedrus-deodara-i-Aurea/Details

|title = RHS Plantfinder - Cedrus deodara 'Aurea'

| publisher = Royal Horticultural Society

| access-date=21 January 2018}} have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit (confirmed 2021).{{cite web | url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf | title = AGM Plants - Ornamental | date = December 2020 | pages = 18, 19 | publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date = 15 June 2021}}

File:Cedrus deodara00.jpg

Deodar is in great demand as building material because of its durability, rot-resistant character and fine, close grain, which is capable of taking a high polish. Its historical use to construct religious temples and in landscaping around temples is well recorded. Its rot-resistant character also makes it an ideal wood for constructing the well-known houseboats of Srinagar, Kashmir. In Pakistan and India, during the British colonial period, deodar wood was used extensively for construction of barracks, public buildings, bridges, canals and railway cars. Despite its durability, it is not a strong timber, and its brittle nature makes it unsuitable for delicate work where strength is required, such as chair-making.{{Citation needed|date=April 2017}}

C. deodara is used in Ayurvedic medicine.

The inner wood is aromatic and used to make incense. Inner wood is distilled into essential oil. As insects avoid this tree, the essential oil is used as insect repellent on the feet of horses, cattle and camels. It also has antifungal properties and has some potential for control of fungal deterioration of spices during storage.{{citation needed|date=December 2017}} The outer bark and stem are astringent.{{cite book |chapter-url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/V5350e/V5350e12.htm |chapter=Cedarwood Oils |title=Flavours and fragances of plant origin |year=1995 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |isbn=92-5-103648-9 |access-date=2008-08-26 |archive-date=2011-06-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110618030456/http://www.fao.org/docrep/v5350e/v5350e12.htm |url-status=dead }}

Because of its antifungal and insect repellent properties, rooms made of deodar cedar wood are used to store meat and food grains like oats and wheat in Shimla, Kullu, and Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh.

Cedar oil is often used for its aromatic properties, especially in aromatherapy. It has a characteristic woody odor which may change somewhat in the course of drying out. The crude oils are often yellowish or darker in color. Its applications include soap perfumes, household sprays, floor polishes, and insecticides, and is also used in microscope work as a clearing oil.

The gum of the tree is used to make rope incense in Nepal and Tibet.{{Cite news |last=Andrews |first=Arden Fanning |date=2021-09-10 |title=An Incense for Every Occasion |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/10/t-magazine/incense-guide.html |access-date=2022-12-14 |issn=0362-4331}}

File:Nathiagali Pipeline Track 04.jpg, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan]]

Among Hindus, as the etymology of deodar suggests, it is worshiped as a divine tree. Deva, the first half of the Sanskrit term, means divine, deity, or deus. Dāru, the second part, is cognate with (related to) the words durum, druid, tree, and true.{{cite web |url=http://jcmcgowan.blogspot.com/2008/03/blog-post.html |first=Chris |last=McGowan |date=March 5, 2008 |title=The Deodar Tree: the Himalayan 'Tree of God'}}{{self-published inline|date=September 2013}} Several Hindu legends refer to this tree. For example, Valmiki Ramayan reads:{{Cite web|url=http://www.valmikiramayan.net/kishkindha/sarga43/kishkindha_43_frame.htm|title=Valmiki Ramayana - Kishkindha Kanda|website=www.valmikiramayan.net}}

{{blockquote|In the stands of Lodhra trees,Symplocos racemosa Padmaka trees Wild Himalayan Cherry and in the woods of Devadaru, or Deodar trees, Ravana is to be searched there and there, together with Sita. [4-43-13]}}

The deodar is the national tree of Pakistan,{{cite web |url=http://www.pakistan.gov.pk/national_symbols.html |title=Pakistan |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161128073024/http://www.pakistan.gov.pk/national_symbols.html |archive-date=2016-11-28 }}{{primary source inline|date=March 2016}} and the state tree of Himachal Pradesh, India.

Under the Deodars was an 1889 short story collection by Rudyard Kipling.{{Cite book|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2828|title=Under the Deodars|first=Rudyard|last=Kipling|date=September 1, 2001|via=Project Gutenberg}}

The 1902 musical A Country Girl featured a song called "Under the Deodar."{{Cite web|url=https://www.shazam.com/gb/track/83459379/under-the-deodar-from-the-country-girl|title=Shazam|website=Shazam}}

• List of Indian timber trees

{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20130929191847/http://conifersaroundtheworld.com/blog/cedrus_deodara_himalayan_cedar Conifers Around the World: Cedrus deodara - Himalayan Cedar].

{{National symbols of Pakistan}}

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deodara

Category:Trees of Afghanistan

Category:Flora of the Indian subcontinent

Category:Flora of Tibet

Category:Medicinal plants of Asia

Category:Trees of temperate climates

Category:Least concern plants

Category:Least concern biota of Asia

Category:National symbols of Pakistan

Category:Garden plants of Asia

Category:Drought-tolerant trees

Category:Ornamental trees