Scientific Name:
Larix laricina
Pronunciation:
LAIR-icks luh-riss-ih-SYE-nah
Common Name:
tamarack, eastern larch, American larch
Family Name:
Pinaceae
Plant Type:
Conifer, Tree - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Needles in tufts of 10-20, linear 1-2.5cm long x 0.5-0.8mm wide x 0.3-0.5mm thick; seed cones 1-2cm long × 0.5-1cm wide, usually on curved stalks 2-5mm long x 2-2.5mm wide or sometimes sessile on long shoots; scales 10-30, margins entire, bracts mucronate or tipped by awn to 1mm, hidden by mature scales, dark red to violet before maturing yellow-brown; seeds 2-3mm long, wings 4-6mm long, seedlings with 4-6 cotyledons; deciduous, 2.5cm needles in bunches of 10-20. Winter ID: crown narrow, branches sparse, horizontal or slightly ascending; twigs orange-brown, glabrous; buds dark red, subtended by ring of hair-like bracts, glabrous. Conifers.org
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Pyramidal - widely
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
15 - 22m
Mature Spread:
7 - 10m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
Canada - northern
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 2: (-46 to -40 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun
Soil/Growing Medium:
Acidic, Bog, Humus rich, Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate, Wetlands
Landscape Uses:
Forestry, Native planting, Screening, Specimen plant
Additional Info:
Google (tree image from Yellowknife, NWT).
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Needle-like
Arrangement:
Fascicles
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Fall:
Yellow
Shapes:
Acicular
Apices:
Obtuse
Bases:
Truncate
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
2.5cm long; soft, flexible, spiral arrangement on petiole; appear in clusters of 10-20 on short twigs; turn yellow in autumn, shed.
Inflorescence Type:
n/a (male cone)
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Colour (petals):
Male cone, No flowers, Yellow
Flower Time at Peak:
Fruit Type:
Cone (winged seeds)
Fruit Colour:
Pink, Red, Brown
Fruiting Time:
Bark Morphology:
Plated
Bark or Stem Colour:
Brown
Leaf Bud Type:
Rounded or globular
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Organ Modifications:
Ectomycorrhizae
Propagation:
Seed
Pest Susceptibility:
Heart rot, Root rot, Sawflies or horntails or ants
Specific Pests:
Course(s):
- HORT 1193/1293
- HORT 2355
- Level 2 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (NRY) NuRserY
- (PHA) PolyHouse and Area