Conifers (Presumably All Growable in California)*

*Do comparable lists of other “specialty” groups, or rather “growable-in-California.”  Subsets thereof:  palms (Arecaceae), bamboos (Poaceae), cacti (Cactaceae), ferns? (several families), bulbs (Iridaceae and Amaryllidaceae and Liliaceae sensu stricto), not orchids (Orchidaceae), although that is a good and big comparable group, and not grasses (Poaceae) even though that is a good and big comparable group.  Or maybe Rosaceae, Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Proteaceae, Ericaceae, Fagaceae, Juglandaceae.

[Something to introduce/justify? The following inventory, possibly to give an overview of one major collectible plant group and the relative practical usefulness of its members . . . ]

Actually . . . IDEA:  This overview of the world’s conifers is a great way to illustrate the hierarchical system of  nomenclature, AND even better (if that is  possible—groan), a nice example of “nested collectibles”.  All conifers, more or less, are growable in most of California, so the whole group could be a collection for a major institution or whatever with the space and resources (does California have a SINGLE Pinetum?).  Next we narrow the scope down to one family (Taxodiaceae would be a splendid, doable choice if you have room, but we will go with the most complex (biggest) family, the Pinaceae, especially in view of its multitude of practical values.  Next step down, to one genus, and again not a small one but the biggest—a collection of PINES—wouldn’t that be to die for? But still a job for more than one person—a community effort, a Pinetum sensu stricto.  Now for the more modest collector, a subset of even the one genus, e.g.: nut-producing pines (my first choice) or pinyon pines (more or less the same thing), or five-needle (white) pines, or “native” pines, or CULTIVARS of a single species (e.g. one of the Japanese pines) . . .