Description
Larix laricina is a small to medium-size boreal coniferous and deciduous tree.
It is a deciduous conifer whose green needles turn a showy yellow in fall before falling to the ground as winter approaches. This is a tree of very cold climates. This is a medium to large sized tree with an open pyramidal shape and horizontal branching.
Slender green needles grow in brush-like cluste Rounded cones mature to brown. Bark on mature trees is a scaly, reddish-brown.Plant Specifications
*above specification are indicative only. actual dimensions may vary by +-10%
| Common Name | Tamarack, hackmatack, eastern larch, black larch |
| Maximum Reachable Height | 40 to 80 feet |
| Difficulty Level | Moderate |
Planting and care
Larix laricina care
Best grown in moist, acidic, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerates some light shade. Intolerant of full shade, dry soils and most city pollutants.
| Sunlight | Full Sun |
| Watering | Medium |
| Soil | Moist, acidic, well-drained soil |
| Temperature | 10 degrees C to 30 degrees C |
| Fertilizer | Apply Any organic fertilizer |
Larix laricina special feature
Tamarack is grown in cold areas, and is not recommended for the St. Louis climate. It is often grown in groups. Good fall color.
Larix laricina uses
Ornamental Use:
- Tamarack is useful as an ornamental in very cold climates
- Indians used the slender roots to sew together strips of birch bark for their canoes
Medicinal Use:
- Tamarack was employed medicinally by a number of native North American Indian tribes who used it to treat a variety of complaints
- It is little used in modern herbalism
- A tea made from the bark is alterative, diuretic, laxative and tonic
- It is used in the treatment of jaundice, anaemia, rheumatism, colds and skin ailments
- It is gargled in the treatment of sore throats and applied as a poultice to sores, swellings and burns
- An infusion of the buds and bark is used as an expectorant
- The needles and inner bark are disinfectant and laxative
- A tea is used in the treatment of coughs
- A poultice made from the warm, boiled inner bark is applied to wounds to draw out infections, to burns, frostbite and deep cuts
- The resin is chewed as a cure for indigestion
- It has also been used in the treatment of kidney and lung disorders, and as a dressing for ulcers and burns
Culinary Use:
- Wildlife use the tree for food and nesting
- Porcupines eat the inner bark, snowshoe hares feeds on tamarack seedlings, and red squirrels