Abies semenovii in North West Russia: taxonomy, ecology, cultivation and conservation

Semenov’s Fir (Abies semenovii B. Fedtsch.) is an extremely rare species in the wild and is included in the International Red List of Conifers and into the Red Data Books of the former USSR and Kyrgyz Republic. Our investigation confirms that this is an independent species, related but not identical to Abies sibirica Ledeb. It has been cultivated at Peter the Great Botanic Garden of the Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Science(s), St.Petersburg, since 1949. Apparently, it was here that Semenov’s Fir was first introduced into cultivation in European gardens. It has produced seeds since 2000, when it was less than 43 years old. It is a hardy and ornamental tree that deserves wider distribution in cultivation in the gardens and parks of North-West Russia. It is proposed that Semenov’s Fir should be given independent taxonomic status as a separate species, Abies semenovii B. Fedtsch.