Araucariaceae
Araucariaceae is a family of coniferous plants that includes three genera and 41 species existing today.
Araucariaceae had a great variety of genera during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods when they were spread throughout the world. At the end of the Cretaceous period, approximately at the time the dinosaurs became extinct, they also disappeared in the northern hemisphere.Present day araucariansare spread in the southern hemisphere reaching as far as the 18° s w in the Philippines. The greatest variety is in New Caledonia (18 species), they also grow in South America, New Zealand and Australia.
All araucariansare evergreen trees, usually with a sole massive trunk and regularly arranged rings of branches.Some species are used for high quality timber or resin others are grown as ornamental garden trees in subtropical regions, while Araucaria excelsa R.Br.is also grown as an indoor plant.