celery pine of New Zealand

An upright, conical, evergreen tree, ultimately reaching 12m, with smooth, grey-black bark and branches in whorls. The foliage consists of 30cm-long phylloclades - flattened stems replacing the true leaves which are reduced to scales. They are divided into diamond-shaped segments, reddish-brown when young, then mid-green. In spring, produces spherical, dark blue or black, female cones, and catkin-like male cones which start purple, ripening to red then yellow