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Ancient Civilizations Of Greece And Rome

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Arguably the most famous and distinctive plant of the island of Socotra in the Arabian Sea, the Dragon’s Blood trees, Dracaena cinnabari, have long held a fascination over those who have lived and worked among them, due to their alien-like appearance and unusual shape. Unlike other member of the Dracaenaceae family the Dracaena cinnabari produces a red resin from the bark after wounding. The medicinal and coloring properties of this resin, along with other dragon trees, was recorded by the ancient civilizations of Greece and Rome. Today, it continues to be used in medicines, dyes, varnish and incense all over the world. Dracaena cinnabari belongs to the Plantae Kingdom. Its Phylum is Tracheophyta, its class is Liliopsida, its Order is Liliales, its Family is Dracaenaceae, and its genus is Dracaena. The Dracaenaceae is a group of about 160 species of tropical trees, shrubs and herbs in the monocotyledonous genera Dracaena and Sansevieria. The Dracaenaceae were formally included in the Agavaceae. Dracaena trees are distributed through the Canary Island, Madeira, Cape Verde Islands and Morocco, tropical Africa, a few in Asia and one species in South America. Most of these tough succulent plants are frequently seen decorating shopping malls and offices and are popular as undemanding houseplants. Dracaena cinnabari is endemic to Soqotra (Socotra), Yemen, a 3625 km^2 island 235 km east of the horn of Africa in the Indian Ocean. The first description of Dracaena cinnabari was

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