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Araucaria heterophylla
Also called Norfolk Island Pine, Star Pine, Norfolk pine
In Singapore: Norfolk Island Pine, House Pine, Australian Pine, Arukaria, Star Pine (Grown in Singapore)
A tall, symmetrical conifer from Norfolk Island, widely grown as a tree outdoors in mild climates and as a small indoor plant. Its key needs are bright light, humid conditions, and steady water when young.
Araucaria heterophylla (synonym A. excelsa) is a species of conifer. As its vernacular name Norfolk Island pine (or Norfolk pine) implies, the tree is endemic to Norfolk Island, an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia. It is not a true pine, which belong to the genus Pinus in the family Pinaceae, but instead is a member of the genus Araucaria in the family Araucariaceae, which also contains the hoop pine and the monkey-puzzle tree. It is sometimes also called a star pine, Polynesian pine, triangle tree or living Christmas tree, due to its symmetrical shape as a sapling.
The distinctive appearance of this tree, with its widely spaced branches and symmetrical, triangular outline, has made it a popular cultivated species, either as a single tree or in avenues. When the tree reaches maturity, the shape may become less symmetrical. Despite the endemic implication of the species name Norfolk Island pine, the species is widely planted as an ornamental tree for its exotic, pleasing appearance and fairly broad climatic adaptability, and now occurs throughout the world in regions with suitable Mediterranean and humid subtropical climate. It grows well in deep sand, as long as it receives reliable water when young. This, and its tolerance of salt and wind, make it ideal for coastal situations. Indoors, the plant needs a bright location with at least 40% but preferably above 60% humidity for good growth. Indoor trees must not be exposed to the scorching sun or dry air from a radiator; the temperature should ideally not exceed 22 °C (72 °F). In winter, the plant needs a bright room that should be around 17 °C (63 °F).
Paraná-pine · Monkey-puzzle · Bunya · Coral Reef Araucaria · Moreton Bay pine · Araucaria
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Araucaria heterophylla 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.
Pet safety from the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists.
