| Common Name: |
American Larch ( Also known by Eastern larch, Tamarack larch) |
| Scientific Name: |
Larix laricina |
| Hardiness Zone: |
Zone 1 through 5; hates the heat |
| Family: |
Pinaceae. |
General Information
Native to northern North America, mainly in Canada, from eastern Yukon and Inuvik, Northwest Territories east to Newfoundland, and also south into the northeastern United States from Minnesota to Cranesville Swamp, West Virginia; there is also a disjunct population in central Alaska. Larix is an unusual genus, one of the handful of deciduous conifers. It grows very open and pyramidical in habit with horizontal branches and drooping branchlets. Larix bears bluish-green needle-like leaves that turn yellowish-brown in autumn. In areas with suitable temperatures, Larch is quite popular as bonsai. It is recommended by its quickly thickening trunk, and its foliage, which is fresh, bright green in spring and lovely golden yellow in autumn. Unlike many conifers, Larix cones are small and seem in proportion to most sizes of bonsai.
Basic Care
| Bark Characteristics: |
Bark: On young trees thin, scaly; on old trees, thick, deeply fissured at the base exposing a reddish brown inner bark which contrast with the grayish brown outer bark. |
| Leaf/Foliage Characteristics: |
Leaves: 3/4 to 1 1/4" long and 1/50th" wide. Texture: Fine. Color: light bluish green. Buds: Rounded, glossy dark red, slightly resinous. |
| Growth Characteristics |
Height: 40 to 80 feet. Width: 15 to 30 feet. Growth: slow to medium. |
| Flower/Fruit Characteristics: |
Cones: Egg shaped, small, 1/3 to 2/3" long, 1/4 to 1/2" wide with 15 to 20 scales. Flowers: Monoecious. Fruit: Cones are small, oval, 1/3 to 2/3" long, 1/4 to 1/2" broad. Green or violet becoming brown when mature. |
| Lighting: |
Full sun. |
| Watering: |
Regulary throughout the growing season. Sparingly during the winter do not allow soil to dry out. |
| Feeding: |
Feed heavily as soon as buds appear in Spring with a high nitrogen feed to force vigorous growth; this should be reduce for finished trees that require only fine growth. Continue to feed well until mid-summer when the tree will enter a semi-dormant period. From late-Summer onwards revert to a low-nitrogen feed to strengthen the tree for the coming Winter. |
| Pruning/Wiring: |
Shorten the shoots during growth. Wire from late spring-autumn. Hard pruning and formative pruning is best carried out in late winter but always leave 2-3 buds on a branch. Maintenance pruning should be carried out through the year by pinching back new shoots; allowing new growth to extend first before pinching back will allow the branches and trunk to thicken. Larches are very vigorous and can replace pruned growth within a matter of weeks. Larches are best pruned in Spring when the leaf buds are ready to sprout and the bare branches can still be seen; care should be taken not to knock off new buds. Larch branches thicken rapidly and wire should inspected regularly to ensure it is not cutting in. Old branches can be successfully wired though if the bark is rough it can mark easily and the use of guy wires is preferable. |
| Propagation: |
Seeds ( cold stratification in moist medium for 30 to 60 days), cuttings (but survival rate is low). |
| Potting: |
Repotting every 2-4 years or as needed, before buds have extended fully. Larches do not like being root bound. |
| Pests: |
Aphids, Wooly Larch aphids, caterpillars, Larch sawfly, gypsy moth, tussock moth, Japanese Beetle, scale. Larch case-bearer is a serious pest. |
| Diseases: |
Needle rusts, honey-fungus, canker, leaf cast, and the dreaded "mysterious wilting disease" which is always fatal to larch. |
| Bibliography: |
en.wikipedia.org. Manual of Woody Landscape Plants; by Michael A. Dirr. bonsai4me.com. |
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