European larch

European larch: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Tree of 25–40 m with a straight trunk and an open, conical crown about 8 m wide; on old trees the side branches droop a little.

Needles

2–4 cm, soft and bright light green; in tufts of 20–40 on short spurs, single on young shoots. Golden yellow in autumn, then they fall.

Bark

Grey-brown; on older trees thick and cracked into scales, red-brown in the fissures.

Cones

Upright cones 2–4 cm with straight or slightly incurved scales; they stay on the tree for years.

Twigs

Yellowish, without bloom.

Difference from Japanese larch

Japanese larch has red-brown, bloomy twigs and cone scales with turned-back edges.

Pruning: July–August and November–February

Identify by feature: Soft needles · Needles that fall · Needles in bundles

Looks like it, but isn’t

• Japanese larch Larix kaempferi: red-brown, bloomy twigs and cone scales with turned-back edges. Difference from Japanese larch

Why grow it?

• Four seasons: fresh light green in spring, golden yellow in autumn, bare and airy in winter.
• An open, light crown: grass, ferns and flowers grow beneath it.
• Siskins and crossbills eat the seeds from the small cones.
• Resinous, durable wood that can be used outdoors untreated.

European larch: where does it grow best?

• Full sun: a larch is a true light-demanding tree and can’t tolerate shade.
• Almost any free-draining soil, including chalky soil; not too dry and not waterlogged.
• An open, airy spot: in damp, sheltered hollows it easily gets larch canker.
• Allow for 25–40 m in height and a crown of about 8 m: only for a large garden, a park or a hedgerow.

Light

Full sun

Legal basis

Any garden soil

Moisture

Normal

Size

35 m tall, 8 m wide

Hardiness

Throughout Belgium, no protection needed

Goes well with

• Silver birch: Another light-loving tree with fine, yellow autumn leaves: together a light, open copse.
• Rowan: Orange berries and red autumn colour next to the golden yellow of the larch.
• Hazel: A native shrub that grows well in the light shade beneath the larch.
• Wood anemone: Flowers in spring under the larch, before the needles are fully out.

Good and bad companions

Goes well with

• Tolerate the shade under this tree: oregon grape, rhododendron, oleaster, japanese skimmia, garden privet, camellia, laurustinus, box-leaved honeysuckle

European larch: when and how to plant it?

1. Plant while it is leafless, from November to February: a larch comes into leaf very early in spring.
2. Choose a young plant; forestry transplants of 40–80 cm establish best.
3. Don’t let the roots dry out, and plant at the same depth as before.
4. Protect the trunk with a guard or tree shelter against deer, which like to browse young larches and rub their antlers on them.
5. Water after planting and during dry spells in the first year.

Care

Watering

In dry spells during the first two years.

Feeding

Not needed; leave the fallen needles where they are.

Under the tree

The light crown allows grass and flowers: mow once or twice a year at most.

Bare in winter

Don’t panic when it turns brown in November and drops all its needles: that is what it is meant to do.

Tip: Plant a larch where you can see it well in autumn: against a dark background of pines or spruces it lights up golden yellow.

European larch: when to prune it?

Pruning months: July–August and November–February.

When: Dead, diseased and broken branches can be removed at any time of year. Formative pruning in summer or during winter dormancy.

How:

• Larch tolerates pruning better than other conifers, but keep the main stem intact.
• Train a young tree on a single leader; remove a competing leader in good time.
• Saw off side branches that are too low gradually, a few each year, flush with the trunk.

Caution: Don’t prune in spring while the needles are emerging, and never remove the leader.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Sowing

In late autumn or winter, pick ripe cones and let them open somewhere warm. Sow the seeds in March–April in a tray and keep them moist.

Seedlings

A seedling can be moved in its first or second year, during winter dormancy.

European larch: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy throughout Belgium: no protection needed.

• Fully hardy: in the wild it grows high in the mountains.
• In winter it is completely bare; the small cones and the knobbly short shoots remain visible.

Diseases and pests

• Larch canker: Sunken, resin-oozing wounds on trunk and branches; the branch dies above them. Mainly in damp, sheltered hollows. Saw off affected branches and choose an airy site.
• Larch case-bearer: In spring, whitened, withered needle tips caused by tiny caterpillars feeding inside the needles. A healthy tree recovers; action is rarely needed.
• Woolly aphid: White, woolly tufts on the needles in spring. Usually harmless.
• Deer: Young larches get browsed and frayed. Protect the trunk with a guard or tree shelter.

Through the year

• January: Formative pruning during dormancy; plant in mild weather.
• February: Last month for winter pruning and planting.
• March: New needles emerge; pink to red young cones.
• April: Check for case-bearer and woolly aphid; don’t prune while the needles are emerging.
• July: Summer pruning possible; water young trees in dry spells.
• August: Summer pruning still possible.
• October: Golden yellow autumn colour.
• November: Needles fall; planting season and winter pruning begin.
• December: Formative pruning and planting in mild weather.

What can you use it for?

Wood

Resinous, durable wood that can be used outdoors untreated: cladding, garden furniture, fencing and posts.

For wildlife

Siskins and crossbills eat the seeds; the light woodland allows plenty of undergrowth.

Garden and landscape

Lovely autumn colour, but a big tree: only for large gardens.

Good for wildlife

Birds

Berries, seeds or insects as food, or a place to nest.

Did you know?

• One of the few conifers that stand completely bare in winter.
• In spring the young female cones are pink to deep red, like little flowers among the fresh green.
• Larch wood is naturally durable: untreated it lasts for years outdoors, as cladding, fencing or posts.
• In the wild, European larch grows in the Alps and the Carpathians, where it climbs to the tree line together with the Swiss stone pine.
• Its resin was once the source of ‘Venice turpentine’, an ingredient of varnishes and painting media.