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List of gymnosperm families
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The gymnosperms consist of five orders of seed plants: Cupressales, Cycadales, Ginkgoales, Gnetales and Pinales.[lower-alpha 1] They developed more than 350 million years ago, long before flowering plants, according to the fossil record. The name comes from the Greek for "naked seed"; the egg cells are not protected by ovaries, as in flowering plants.[4]
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Gymnosperms are divided into 12 families of trees, shrubs and woody vines.[5] Sequoiadendron giganteum, the giant redwood, is the largest tree in the world, and Sequoia sempervirens, the coastal redwood, is the tallest.[6] Ginkgo trees tolerate urban pollutants well, and are often planted in and near cities.[7] The pine family is the main source of softwood timber, paper pulp and turpentine.[8] The flexible wood of the yew family is used in longbows and musical instruments.[9]