Plant
Sandarac tree
A Mediterranean conifer recognised by scale-like leaves and cones with four woody valves.
Content language
The sandarac tree, Tetraclinis articulata, is one of the rare conifers documented in Gołubie’s collection. It belongs to the cypress family. Its main natural range lies in north-western Africa: Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.
Small relict populations also survive in Spain and Malta. The species grows with periods of drought and winter rainfall, often on limestone soils. It stays green throughout the year and can grow as a shrub or a tree. These characteristics connect its story with Mediterranean vegetation.
Its scale-like leaves are arranged in whorls of four, and its cones open with four woody valves. The seeds each have two wings. The repeated number four is therefore a useful clue when exploring the plant’s structure. In the garden, compare a small branchlet with conifers that have flat or broad leaves; belonging to the same broad group does not mean having the same structure.
For children
The sandarac tree is a conifer in the cypress family. Its full scientific name is Tetraclinis articulata. In the wild it grows mainly in north-western Africa, with small populations also surviving in Spain and Malta. It is documented in Gołubie’s garden collection too.
This species grows in conditions with dry periods and winter rain. It stays green all year. It can grow as a shrub or a tree, so specimens need not all have the same outline.
The number four appears repeatedly in its structure. Its tiny, scale-like leaves grow in groups of four, and a cone has four woody valves. Each seed, meanwhile, has two wings. Looking at the branchlets, try to distinguish the scales from the broad leaves of other conifers in the collection.
Question 1 of 2