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Larix decidua
Also called Larch, Common Larch
European larch is a large deciduous conifer from the mountains of central Europe, grown as an ornamental tree in gardens and parks. It is hardy and cold tolerant, and it loses its needles each autumn after turning bright yellow.
Larix decidua, the European larch, is a species of larch native to the mountains of central Europe, in the Alps and Carpathian Mountains, with small disjunct lowland populations in northern Poland. Its life span has been confirmed to be close to 1000 years, with ages of around 2000 years likely.
Larix decidua is widely cultivated as an ornamental tree for planting in gardens and parks. It was first cultivated in Britain in or shortly before 1629. John Evelyn encouraged its wider planting and use. Three successive Dukes of Atholl planted it widely and the fourth Duke wrote "Observations on Larch" in 1807 further encouraged its cultivation, which he practiced on a large scale. One of the larches planted by the second Duke of Atholl at Dunkeld in 1737 is still standing, as are two slightly older specimens planted in 1725 at Kailzie, near Peebles in southern Scotland.
European larch is now widely naturalised in northern Europe, including Britain, Scandinavia, and in Germany north of its native range. It is also widely cultivated in southern Canada and the northeastern United States, and is naturalised in Maine, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Rhode Island. In the northern Appalachian Mountains it is often used for the reforestation of surface mines.
The seeds are an important food for some birds, notably siskin, redpoll, and citril finch, while the buds and immature cones are eaten by capercaillie.
Dahurian Larch · Japanese Larch · Eastern Larch · Siberian Larch · Larch
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Larix decidua 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.
