Japanese Larch. Conifer and Deciduous

[NBPCA]

Hi Grant, How do you know the difference between a Japanese larch and a European larch? I have three of them in Sydney's south, but they are growing so slowly in pots for around a decade so I decided to put them in the ground this year. Is there anything I should keep in mind if I leave them in the ground for a few years? Cheers Eddie

Japanese Larch has a label on it that says Japanese larch; Larix Kaempferi. By observation the needles are a bit smaller and finer than the European larch.

European Larch always died for me even at Mittagong where it was cold enough I would have thought, so you probably have the Japanese Larch. They love plenty of water.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Hi all,

After just two weeks the larch has gone beserk with new growth.

Larch after two weeks growth - compressed.JPG

I will give it a trim this afternoon; harder on the top and less so on the bottom branches.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Trimmed. I will reinforce a conifer style on this tree.

Japanese Larch 30th October 2010.JPG

Grant

[Matthew]

Grant love your work, im looking forward to developing the dozen or so i got. With trimming do you just shorten back to a bud like cedar?

[Grant Bowie]

Grant love your work, im looking forward to developing the dozen or so i got. With trimming do you just shorten back to a bud like cedar?

The buds are very small(I actually had to wear reading glasses to do it) and seem to come in slightly spaced sets of two buds(up and down or side to side) about 25mm apart.

I have left some weaker growth untrimmed and will do them as they elongate. It will be interesting to see how trims I will get this year.

grant

[Grant Bowie]

there is one growing here in renmark..... unless there is another tree that looks like a larch and drops its needles in winter?

I have been thinking about this comment for a while and I still dont believe, from all of my experience with larch, that they would grow in such a hot,dry climate at zero altitude in australia with mild and not cold winters.

You ask is there another tree that looks like Larch and drops its needles? Well yes there is. The Pseudolarix(false larch) amabilis or Golden Larch. Needles are a bit broader but can easily be mistaken for Larch.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

As of and after today 21st january 2011

Larch 001.jpg

Larch 005.jpg

The tree was unwired and the bandage and rubber were removed.
I also removed the thickening branch near apex, the lowest back branch and the small branch under the first major branch on the left.

Larch 011.jpg

The area where the trunk was split looks to be doing fine. It is very firm and appears to be callousing under the putty/.

Larch 015.jpg

Grant

[gr8bookworm]

Great work Grant, the tree is looking great!

[NBPCA]

Hi All,

The Larch is doing fine and now in autumn color. The split in the trunk is mostly healed over now.

Re repotting a Larch I would do it late winter/early spring.

Photo soon.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Hi all,

Here is the larch with some autumn color. It just needs five or ten years of constant work to now bulk it up.

Japanese larch 21st April 2011.JPG

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Now fully deciduous and the cut and split of the trunk last year is almost gone from the naked eye.

IMG_1185.JPG

Give it a few more years of twigging up and it should be OK.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Larix kaempherii Japanese larch 15th october 2011.JPG

[Craig]

,Your Larch is looking Fantastic Grant,i like the slight adjustment of trunk angle aswell mate, great work

[Grant Bowie]

Update

Front repotted new angle 15th Aug 2010.JPG

July 2011.JPG

July 2012.JPG

Starting to get a bit more ramification each year.

Grant

[Grant Bowie]

Update.

Late March 2013 (2).JPG

The Japanese larch is still in leaf whereas the European larch lost its needles about 3 weeks ago.

Grant