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Araucaria araucana
Also called Pehuen, Monkeypuzzle tree, Monkey puzzle tree, Chilean Pine, Chile Pine, Monkey Tail Tree
A large evergreen conifer from the Andes of Chile and Argentina, grown as a striking garden tree with thick, scale-like leaves and a symmetrical, umbrella-shaped crown when mature. It is the hardiest species in its genus and is best grown in cool, moist, well-drained conditions.
Araucaria araucana, commonly called the pewen, monkey-puzzle tree, pehuen or piñonero or Chile pine, is a species of conifer in the family Araucariaceae. It is a tree that grows to a height of 30–40 m (98–131 ft) and a trunk diameter of 1–1.5 m (3.3–4.9 ft). Native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina, it is the hardiest species in the conifer genus Araucaria.
It is the national tree of Chile and of the neighboring Argentine province of Neuquén. The IUCN changed its conservation status to Endangered in 2013, because logging, forest fires, and grazing have caused its population to dwindle.
Araucaria araucana is a popular garden tree, planted for the unusual effect of its thick, "reptilian" branches with a very symmetrical appearance. It prefers temperate oceanic climates with abundant rainfall, tolerating temperatures down to about −20 °C (−4 °F). It is far and away the hardiest member of its genus. It can grow well in western and central Europe (north to the Faroe Islands and Smøla in western Norway), in North America on the West Coast north to Baranof Island in Alaska and on the East Coast as far north as Long Island, in the southern hemisphere south of its native range to southern Chile, and also in New Zealand and southeastern Australia. It is tolerant of coastal salt spray but not air pollution.
Once valued because of its long, straight trunk, its current rarity and vulnerable status mean its wood is now rarely used; it is also sacred to some indigenous Mapuche. Timber from these trees was used for railway sleepers to access many industrial areas around the port of Chile.
The tree's native habitat is the lower slopes of the Chilean and Argentine south-central Andes, between approximately 1,000 m (3,300 ft) and 1,700 m (5,600 ft) elevation. In the Chilean Coast Range, A. araucana can be found as far south as Villa Las Araucarias (latitude 38° 30' S) at an altitude of 640 m. Juvenile trees exhibit a broadly pyramidal or conical habit, which naturally develops into the distinctive umbrella form of mature specimens as the tree ages. It prefers well-drained, slightly acidic, volcanic soil, but will tolerate almost any soil type provided it drains well. Seedlings are often not competitive enough to survive unless grown in a canopy gap or an exposed, isolated area. It is almost never found together with Chusquea culeou, Nothofagus dombeyi, or Nothofagus pumilio because they typically outcompete A. araucana.
Paraná-pine · Bunya · Coral Reef Araucaria · Moreton Bay pine · Norfolk Island Araucaria · Araucaria
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Araucaria araucana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
