Cedar Forests

forests with various species of cedar (Cedrus). They have been preserved primarily in the form of relict and, as a rule, separate stands. Forests of Atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica), found in the Atlas Mountains of North Africa, are mixed with holm oak, juniper, holly, and other trees. In Asia Minor and Cyprus, the cedar of Lebanon (C. libani) forms both pure stands and stands mixed with fir and juniper. The deodar (C. deodara), found in Central Asia, on the mountains of Baluchistan and Afghanistan, and on the Western Himalayas, grows in pure stands or is mixed with spruce and fir.

Although cedar wood is of high quality, the national economic significance of cedar forests is small. The wood, which is yellowish or brown, resists damage from insects and fungi.