Eastern Larch seeds

Larix Laricina seeds

Habitat

native to northern North America, from northern United States into Canada and Arctic Circle
Zone 1

Habit and Form

deciduous conifer
50′ to 80′ tall by 20′ to 30′ wide
pyramidal in habit with horizontal branches and weeping branchlets
fine to medium foliage texture, coarse in winter
slow to moderate growth rate
Summer Foliage

3-sided needle
0.75″ to 1.25″ long
bluish green in color
needles in clusters of 30 or less on spurs
needles spirally arranged on long shoots
dark reddish brown, resinous buds
Autumn Foliage

needles turn yellow before dropping
typically showy
Flowers

monoecious
not especially ornamental
Fruit

globose-ovoid, less than 0.75″ long
12 to 20 scales
scales are smooth and minutely crenulate
Bark

scaly, gray to reddish brown
young stems are thin, pubescent, and reddish brown
Culture

cool summers are required
moist, well-drained, acidic soil is best, but tolerant of wet soils
full sun
Landscape Uses

best used in native habitat; not well suited to cultivation
fall color
work well planted in groves or groupings
Liabilities

hard to find
not tolerant of any heat, shade, or air pollution
larch case-bearer, woolly aphid, sawfly are pest problem
intolerant of cultivation
ID Features

spurs on branches
cones are very small and egg-shaped
cones are persistent on tree
new stems are pubescent

Propagation

by seeds
Cultivars/Varieties

Few cultivars of this native species exist, and most are of little commercial importance. Dr. Sid Waxman at the University of Connecticut has selected some dwarf and other specialized forms.

Dwarf forms include: ‘Blue Sparkler’, with bluish foliage; ‘Deborah Waxman’, which reaches 4′ in time; ‘Lanark’, which grows very low and wide; and ‘Newport Beauty’, a tiny form probably never exceeding 2′ tall and wide.