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Podocarpus elatus
Podocarpaceae FAMILY

Podocarpus elatus

Podocarpus elatus

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

Superficially similar to Taxus species, but this plant is definitely not poisonous[1].

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthFast

Podocarpus elatus is a plant of the moist subtropics and tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 1,000 metres[1, 2]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 18 - 30°c, but can tolerate 8 - 34°c[2]. When dormant, the plant can survive temperatures down to about -2°c, but young growth can be severely damaged at 0°c[2]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1.000 - 1,500mm, but tolerates 800 - 1,700mm[2]. Prefers a sunny position[2]. Prefers a rich moist non-alkaline soil[3]. Resists salt spray[4]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 6.5, tolerating 4.5 - 7.5[2]. The best development is obtained in coastal lowlands on deep alluvial soils besides river banks[2]. A fast-growing tree, it takes 8 - 10 years from seed to reach sexual maturity[2]. The tree usually survives forest fires[2]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[1]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Propagation

The seed can be sown at any time of the year in a sandy soil in a warm greenhouse, though it is probably best sown as soon as it is ripe[5]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe terminal shoots, 5 - 10cm long, mid summer in a frame[6]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Podocarpus+elatus>

Pollinators

Wind

References

  1. [1]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  2. [2]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  3. [3]A Field Guide to Australian Trees. — Holliday. I. and Hill. R. · Frederick Muller Ltd. · 1974 · ISBN 0-85179-627-3 ↩︎A well illustrated and very readable book, but it does not contain much information for the plant project.
  4. [4]Australian Native Plants. — Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. · Collins. (Australia) · 1988 · ISBN 0-7322-0021-0 ↩︎A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.
  5. [5]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  6. [6]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  7. [7]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  8. [8]Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants — http://www.anbg.gov.au/cpbr/cd-keys/rfk/index.html ↩︎An online resource giving botanical information, and a little bit about plant usage, for over 2,700 species of plants found in the Australian rainforest.
  9. [9]Useful Wild Plants in Australia. — Cribb. A. B. and J. W. · William Collins Pty Ltd. Sidney · 1981 · ISBN 0-00-216441-8 ↩︎A very readable book.
  10. [10]Wild Food Plants of Australia. — Low. T. · Angus and Robertson. · 1989 · ISBN 0-207-14383-8 ↩︎Well presented, clear information and good photographs. An interesting read for the casual reader as well as the enthusiast
  11. [11]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  12. [12]Australian Native Plants Society — http://anpsa.org.au/index.html ↩︎A series of fact sheets on Australian plants. Good photographs, brief description and information on uses, habitat, range, cultivation etc.
  13. [13]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  14. [14]The Useful Native Plants of Australia. — Maiden J.H. · Turner & Co.; London. · 1889 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Terse details of the uses of many Australian plants and other species naturalised, or at least growing, in Australia. It can be downloaded from the Internet.