A conifer that drops every needle in autumn, going butter-yellow first and standing bare all winter
European larch — Larix decidua.
Nature · Trees
European larch
Deciduous conifer · to 45 m · introduced c. 1620
Larix decidua — Pinaceae
The larch is the conifer that behaves like a broadleaf: it drops all its needles in autumn, going butter-yellow before a winter of bare, pale, drooping twigs. Its soft needles grow in rosettes on short woody spurs, and its small upright cones sit like roses along the branch. The Dukes of Atholl planted it in millions in Perthshire.
How to know it
How to spot them
- ▸A conifer with no needles in winter — bare, pale straw-coloured twigs drooping from the branches
- ▸Soft, light green needles in rosettes of 30–40 on short woody spurs, plus single needles on new shoots
- ▸Small upright egg-shaped cones with straight scales, staying on the twig for years and greying
- ▸Bright crimson female flowers ('larch roses') in spring beside the new needle tufts
- ▸Butter-yellow autumn colour, unique among common conifers
How to know it
Soft light needles borne in rosettes of thirty or more on short woody spurs along the branch
European larch.
Small upright egg-shaped cones sit along the twig for years, beside crimson spring flowers called roses
European larch. The Japanese species has cones with reflexed, rosette-like scales.
The Dukes of Atholl planted it by the million in Perthshire from the eighteenth century
European larch. The Dunkeld larch is the hybrid raised on that estate.
Phytophthora ramorum forced the felling of huge plantations of it in western Britain from 2009
European larch. The disease is often called sudden oak death, though larch is its main British host.
Its tough, resinous, rot-resistant timber went into boat planking, fence posts and pit props
European larch.
Quick-fire facts
- •Larix decidua — decidua means 'deciduous', the point of the tree
- •Introduced to Britain around 1620 from the Alps and Carpathians; the Dukes of Atholl planted millions in Perthshire
- •The Dunkeld or hybrid larch (Larix x marschlinsii) arose on the Atholl estate from a cross with Japanese larch
- •Larch is one of the few deciduous conifers, with bald cypress, dawn redwood and the golden larch
- •Phytophthora ramorum, the pathogen behind sudden oak death, found larch a highly susceptible host and forced mass fellings in Britain from 2009
- •Venetian turpentine is tapped from larch resin
- •Larch timber is durable and resinous, used for boat planking, gates, fence posts and cladding
- •The bright crimson female flowers of spring are known as larch roses
Drill it — 7 cards
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Sources
- Woodland Trust — European larch (Larix decidua)