PINACEAE 



Western Larch 



Larix occidentalis Nutt. 



HABIT. A tree 140-180 feet in height and 3-4 feet in diameter; 

 long, clear, cylindrical bole, often with a swollen butt; short, 

 open crown of small, horizontal branches. 



LEAVES. Linear, flatly triangular in cross section, 1-1% 

 inches long, light pale green becoming yellow, and falling in 

 early autumn, in clusters of 14-30. 



FLOW'ERS. Male short, oblong; female oblong, subsessile. 



FRUIT. \-\V2 inches long, short-stalked, oblong, purple- 

 red to red-brown, falling first year; cone scales 40 or more, 

 broader than long, sometimes toothed at reflexed apex, usually 

 white woolly on the outside, and shorter than exserted long- 

 tipped bracts. Seed: |4 inch long, with wings Yz inch long. 



TWIGS. Stout, brittle, at first with a pale pubescence, soon 

 becoming glabrous and orange-brown. Winter buds: Yq inch 

 in diameter, subglobose, chestnut-brown. 



BARK. Scaly on young stems; 4-6 inches thick, plated, and 

 deeply furrowed on old trunks; red-brown to cinnamon-red. 



WOOD. Heartwood red-brown, heavy, strong, and durable; 

 similar to and sold as Douglas-fir, for lumber, poles, ties, etc. 



SILVICAL CHARACTERS. Intolerant; growth rather 

 slow, maturity being reached in 300-400 years (trees over 700 

 years reported; reproduction vigorous, competing with lodge- 

 pole pine on burned areas; windfirm with deep, widespreading 

 root system; fungi and mistletoe often cause damage. 



HABITAT. Transition zone; altitudinal range 2,000-7,000 

 feet; best development on deep, moist soils but does well on 

 dry, gravelly slopes; in nearly pure stands or with Douglas-fir, 

 western white, ponderosa and lodgepole pines, western hem- 

 lock, Engelmann spruce, and alpine and grand fir. 



Subalpinc larch, Larix lyallii Pari., is a small timber-line tree 

 in regions of heavy snows that fall early and remain late. Its 

 range lies within that shown for western larch. It is characterized 

 by densely woolly twigs and cone scales, cones lVi-2 inches 

 long with exserted bracts, 4-angle needles, and thin, furrowed, 

 scaly bark. 



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