Cephalotaxus hainanensis

Botanical Description

Cephalotaxus hainanensis is an evergreen tree that can grow up to 20 metres tall. The bole can be 20 - 50cm in diameter[ 1193 Title A taxonomic revision of the genus Cephalotaxus (Taxaceae) Publication Phytotaxa 84 (1); 1-24 Author Xue-Dong Lang; Jian-Rong Su; Shu-Gang Lu & Zhi-Jun Zhang Website http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.84.1.1 Publisher Magnolia Press Year 2013 ISBN 1179-3163 Description A review of the genus Cephalotaxus. It can be downloaded from the Internet ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and source of wood. It is harvested on a commercial basis for its stems and bark, which are a source of compounds used in anticancer treatments. The plant is sometimes grown as an ornamental in gardens. Past population declines have been due to logging and more recently exploitation of bark and leaves which contain the valuable medicinal extracts, cephalotaxine and harringtonine. The main threat now is habitat destruction due to the expansion of tourist developments (ongoing). As with other members of the genus, the maturation rate of the seed is slow and regeneration is relatively infrequent. The plant is classified as 'Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].