Abies balsamea 'Compacta'

Discussion in 'Gymnosperms (incl. Conifers) Photo Gallery' started by coniferophytus, May 11, 2008.

  1. coniferophytus

    coniferophytus Member

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    Compact, wider than tall, growing 2" per year. This plant is 14" across and 6 years old. Purchased from Girard Nurseries in Geneva, Ohio.
     

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    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 15, 2011
  2. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Re: Abies alba Compacta

    That isn't Abies alba - the leaf arrangement is wrong (Abies alba has strongly pectinate leaf arrangement), and also Abies alba doesn't have a patch of stomata near the apex of the upper side of the leaf as this plant has.

    Two possibilities:
    1. the plant is incorrectly labelled (i.e., other Abies alba 'Compacta' are not the same as this plant).
    2. the plant is correctly labelled as per what the breeder named it, but the breeder got the species identification wrong in the first place (i.e., other Abies alba 'Compacta' are the same as this plant, and they all need renaming).
     
  3. coniferophytus

    coniferophytus Member

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  4. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

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    Re: Abies alba Compacta

    I had the same impression and was going to say it was probably a dwarf balsam fir when this was first posted. However, dwarf conifers can be tricky, with growth sufficiently aberrant to make correct parental species assignment a challenge. Even a European web site appears to show the same form under the same name, so I just left it alone.
     
  5. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

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    Re: Abies alba Compacta

    That was my thought too!
     

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