Larch

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Larch
SubalpineLarch 7735tl.jpg
Larix lyallii in autumn near Sprite Lake in Washington State, US
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Subfamily: Laricoideae
Genus: Larix
Mill.
Type species
Larix decidua
Species

About 10–11; see text

Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus Larix, of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from 20 to 45 metres (65 to 150 feet) tall, [1] they are native to the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, where they are found in lowland forests in the high latitudes, and high in mountains further south. Larches are among the dominant plants in the boreal forests of Siberia and Canada. Although they are conifers, larches are deciduous trees that lose their needles in the autumn.

Contents

Etymology

The English name larch ultimately derives from the Latin "larigna", named after the ancient settlement of Larignum. The story of its naming was preserved by Vitruvius:

It is worth while to know how this wood was discovered. The divine Caesar, being with his army in the neighbourhood of the Alps, and having ordered the towns to furnish supplies, the inhabitants of a fortified stronghold there, called Larignum, trusting in the natural strength of their defences, refused to obey his command. So the general ordered his forces to the assault. In front of the gate of this stronghold there was a tower, made of beams of this wood laid in alternating directions at right angles to each other, like a funeral pyre, and built high, so that they could drive off an attacking party by throwing stakes and stones from the top. When it was observed that they had no other missiles than stakes, and that these could not be hurled very far from the wall on account of the weight, orders were given to approach and to throw bundles of brushwood and lighted torches at this outwork. These the soldiers soon got together.

The flames soon kindled the brushwood which lay about that wooden structure and, rising towards heaven, made everybody think that the whole pile had fallen. But when the fire had burned itself out and subsided, and the tower appeared to view entirely uninjured, Caesar in amazement gave orders that they should be surrounded with a palisade, built beyond the range of missiles. So the townspeople were frightened into surrendering, and were then asked where that wood came from which was not harmed by fire. They pointed to trees of the kind under discussion, of which there are very great numbers in that vicinity. And so, as that stronghold was called Larignum, the wood was called larch.

— "Book II"  . Ten Books on Architecture– via Wikisource.

Description and distribution

European larch foliage and cones Larix decidua0.jpg
European larch foliage and cones

The tallest species, Larix occidentalis , can reach 50 to 60 m (165 to 195 ft). The larch's tree crown is sparse and the branches are brought horizontal to the stem, even if some species have them characteristically pendulous. Larch shoots are dimorphic, with leaves borne singly on long shoots typically 10 to 50 cm (4 to 20 in) long [2] : 47  and bearing several buds, and in dense clusters of 20–50 needles on short shoots [2] only 1–2 mm (1⁄32–3⁄32 in) long with only a single bud. The leaves (light green) are needle-like, 2 to 5 cm (3⁄4 to 2 in) long, slender (under 1 cm or 1⁄2 in wide). Larches are among the few deciduous conifers, which are usually evergreen. Other deciduous conifers include the golden larch Pseudolarix amabilis , the dawn redwood Metasequoia glyptostroboides , the Chinese swamp cypress Glyptostrobus pensilis and the bald cypresses in the genus Taxodium .

The male flowers (small cones) are orange-yellowish and fall after pollination. The female flowers (or cones) of larches are erect, small, 1–9 cm (1⁄2–3+1⁄2 in) long, green or purple, brown in ripening and lignify (called now strobilus) 5–8 months after pollination; in about half the species the bract scales are long and visible, and in the others, short and hidden between the seed scales. Those native to northern regions have small cones (1–3 cm or 1⁄2–1 in) with short bracts, with more southerly species tending to have longer cones (3–9 cm or 1+1⁄4–3+1⁄2 in), often with exserted bracts, with the longest cones and bracts produced by the southernmost species, in the Himalayas. The seeds are winged. The larches are streamlined trees,[ clarification needed ] the root system is broad and deep and the bark is finely cracked and wrinkled in irregular plaques. The wood is bicolor, with salmon pink heartwood and yellowish white sapwood.

The chromosome number is 2n = 24, similar to that of most of the other trees of the family Pinaceae.

The genus Larix is present in all the temperate-cold zones of the northern hemisphere, from North America to northern Siberia passing through Europe, mountainous China and Japan. The larches are important forest trees of Russia, Central Europe, United States and Canada. They require a cool and fairly humid climate and for this reason they are found in the mountains of the temperate zones, while in the northernmost boreal zones they are also found in the plain. Larch trees go further north than all, reaching in North America and Siberia the tundra and polar ice. The larches are pioneer species not very demanding towards the soil and they are very long-lived trees. They live in pure or mixed forests together with other conifers or more rarely with broad-leaved trees.

Species and taxonomy

Phylogeny of Larix [3] [4]
series

L. potaninii Batalin

Potaniniae
series

L. occidentalis Nuttall

Occidentales
series

L. decidua Miller

Deciduae

L. cajanderi Mayr

series

L. griffithii Hooker

L. gmelinii (Rupr.) Kuzen.

Griffithianae
series

L. kaempferi (Lamb.) Carrière

L. laricina (Du Roi) Koch

L. lyallii Parlatore

L. sibirica Ledeb.

Laricinae

In the past, the cone bract length was often used to divide the larches into two sections (sect. Larix with short bracts, and sect. Multiserialis with long bracts), but genetic evidence [5] does not support this division, pointing instead to a genetic divide between Old World and New World species, with the cone and bract size being merely adaptations to climatic conditions. More recent genetic studies have proposed three groups within the genus, with a primary division into North American and Eurasian species, and a secondary division of the Eurasian into northern short-bracted species and southern long-bracted species; [6] [7] [8] [9] there is some dispute over the position of Larix sibirica, a short-bracted species which is placed in the short-bracted group by some of the studies and the long-bracted group by others. The genus Larix belongs to the subfamily Laricoideae, which also includes the genera Pseudotsuga and Cathaya .

There are ten accepted species of larch and one accepted hybrid, subdivided on the basis of the most recent phylogenetic investigations: [10]

North American species

Larch forest in the North Cascades Raven Ridge - Flickr - brewbooks (2).jpg
Larch forest in the North Cascades
Range map of Larix laricina Larix laricina range map.jpg
Range map of Larix laricina

Eurasian species

Siberian larches Nature in Khanty-Mansiya.jpg
Siberian larches

Northern Eurasian species with short bracts

Southern Euroasiatic species with long bracts

European larch in the Italian Alps Arancione.jpg
European larch in the Italian Alps

Hybrids

Most if not all of the species can be hybridised in cultivation.[ citation needed ]

Selected hybrids include: [10]

The hybrid, Larix × marschlinsii, the Dunkeld larch, is an artificial hybrid L. decidua × L. sibirica [10] that arose more or less simultaneously in Switzerland and Scotland.[ citation needed ]

Larix × stenophylla Sukaczev is another probable hybrid still unresolved.[ citation needed ]

Larch is used as a food plant by the larvae of a number of Lepidoptera species.

Ecology

Larches are associated with a number of mycorrhizal fungal species, including some species which primarily or only associate with larch. One of the most prominent of these species is the larch bolete Suillus grevillei . [11]

Diseases

Larches are prone to the fungal canker disease Lachnellula ssp. (larch canker); this is particularly a problem on sites prone to late spring frosts, which cause minor injuries to the tree allowing entry to the fungal spores. In Canada, this disease was first detected in 1980 and is particularly harmful to an indigenous species larch, the tamarack, killing both young and mature trees. [12] Larches are also vulnerable to Phytophthora ramorum . In late 2009 the disease was first found in Japanese larch trees in the English counties of Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, and has since spread to the south-west of Scotland. [13] [ failed verification ] In August 2010 the disease was found in Japanese larch trees in counties Waterford and Tipperary in Ireland [14] [ failed verification ] and in 2013 in the Afan Forest Park in south Wales. [15] Laricifomes officinalis is another mushroom found in Europe, North America and northern Asia that causes internal wood rot. It is almost exclusive guest of the gen. Larix. Other diseases are given by mushrooms, fungal rusts, bacteria and insects.

Uses

Larch wood is valued for its tough, waterproof and durable qualities. Top quality knot-free timber is in great demand for building yachts and other small boats, for exterior cladding of buildings, and interior paneling. The timber is somewhat resistant to rot when in contact with the ground, and historically was used as posts and in fencing. However, European Standard EN 350-2 lists larch as slightly to moderately durable; this would make it unsuitable for ground contact use without preservative in temperate climates, and would give it a limited life as external cladding without coatings. [16]

The hybrid Dunkeld larch is widely grown as a timber crop in Northern Europe, valued for its fast growth and disease resistance.

Larch on oak was the traditional construction method for Scottish fishing boats in the 19th century.[ citation needed ]

Larch has also been used in herbal medicine; see Bach flower remedies and Arabinogalactan for details.

Often, in Eurasian shamanism, the "world tree" is depicted as specifically a larch tree. [17] Planted on borders with birch, both tree species were used in pagan cremations.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fir</span> Genus of plants in the conifer family cedar

Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus Abies in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The genus is most closely related to Cedrus (cedar)The genus name is derived from the Latin "to rise" in reference to the height of its species. The common English name originates with the Old Norse, fyri, or the Old Danish, fyr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinaceae</span> Family of conifers

The Pinaceae, or pine family, are conifer trees or shrubs, including many of the well-known conifers of commercial importance such as cedars, firs, hemlocks, piñons, larches, pines and spruces. The family is included in the order Pinales, formerly known as Coniferales. Pinaceae are supported as monophyletic by their protein-type sieve cell plastids, pattern of proembryogeny, and lack of bioflavonoids. They are the largest extant conifer family in species diversity, with between 220 and 250 species in 11 genera, and the second-largest in geographical range, found in most of the Northern Hemisphere, with the majority of the species in temperate climates, but ranging from subarctic to tropical. The family often forms the dominant component of boreal, coastal, and montane forests. One species, Pinus merkusii, grows just south of the equator in Southeast Asia. Major centres of diversity are found in the mountains of southwest China, Mexico, central Japan, and California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Two-barred crossbill</span> Species of bird

The two-barred crossbill or white-winged crossbill is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. It breeds in the coniferous forests of North America and the Palearctic.

<i>Pinus sibirica</i> Species of conifer

Pinus sibirica, or Siberian pine, in the family Pinaceae is a species of pine tree that occurs in Siberia from 58°E in the Ural Mountains east to 126°E in the Stanovoy Range in southern Sakha Republic, and from Igarka at 68°N in the lower Yenisei valley, south to 45°N in central Mongolia.

<i>Larix laricina</i> Species of larch native to North America

Larix laricina, commonly known as the tamarack, hackmatack, eastern larch, black larch, red larch, or American larch, is a species of larch native to Canada, from eastern Yukon and Inuvik, Northwest Territories east to Newfoundland, and also south into the upper northeastern United States from Minnesota to Cranesville Swamp, West Virginia; there is also an isolated population in central Alaska.

<i>Pseudolarix amabilis</i> Species of deciduous conifers in the family Pinaceae

Pseudolarix amabilis is a species of coniferous tree in the pine family Pinaceae. The species is commonly known as golden larch, but being more closely related to Keteleeria, Abies and Cedrus, is not a true larch (Larix). P. amabilis is native to eastern China, occurring in small areas in the mountains of southern Anhui, Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei and eastern Sichuan, at altitudes of 100–1,500 m (328–4,921 ft). The earliest known occurrences are of compression fossils found in the Ypresian Allenby Formation and mummified fossils found in the Late Eocene Buchanan Lake Formation on Axel Heiberg Island.

<i>Larix decidua</i> Species of conifer in the pine family Pinaceae

Larix decidua, the European larch, is a species of larch native to the mountains of central Europe, in the Alps and Carpathian Mountains as well as the Pyrenees, with disjunct lowland populations in northern Poland and southern Lithuania. It is widely naturalized in Scandinavia. Its life span has been confirmed to be close to 1000 years but is more often around 200 years. It is claimed that one of the larches planted by the second Duke of Atholl at Dunkeld in 1738 is still standing.

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<i>Larix lyallii</i> Species of conifer

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western larch</span> Species of conifer

The western larch is a species of larch native to the mountains of western North America ; in Canada in southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta, and in the United States in eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, northern Idaho, and western Montana. It is the most productive of the three species of larch native to North America.

<i>Larix kaempferi</i> Species of conifer in the pine family Pinaceae

Larix kaempferi, the Japanese larch or karamatsu in Japanese, is a species of larch native to Japan, in the mountains of Chūbu and Kantō regions in central Honshū.

<i>Larix sibirica</i> Species of conifer

Larix sibirica, the Siberian larch or Russian larch, is a frost-hardy tree native to western Russia, from close to the Finnish border east to the Yenisei valley in central Siberia, where it hybridises with the Dahurian larch L. gmelinii of eastern Siberia; the hybrid is known as Larix × czekanowskii.

<i>Larix gmelinii</i> Species of conifer

Larix gmelinii, the Dahurian larch or Gmelin larch, is a species of larch native to eastern Siberia and adjacent northeastern Mongolia, northeastern China (Heilongjiang), South Korea and North Korea.

<i>Larix griffithii</i> Species of conifer

Larix griffithii, the Sikkim larch, is a species of larch, native to the eastern Himalaya in eastern Nepal, Sikkim, western Bhutan and southwestern China, growing at 1,800–4,100 metres (5,900–13,500 ft) in altitude.

<i>Larix <span style="font-style:normal;">×</span> czekanowskii</i> Species of conifer

Larix × czekanowskii is a larch species, likely a hybrid between Siberian larch and Dahurian larch.

Larix gmelinii var. olgensis, synonym Larix olgensis, the Olga Bay larch or Olgan larch, is a variety of larch. The variety is named after Olga Bay in the Sea of Japan. The common name in Japanese language is 満洲唐松. The common name in Chinese is 黄花落叶松. This variety occurs in Central Sikhote-Alin, and rarely occurs in North Korea, and Jilin and eastern Heilongjiang provinces of China, between 500 and 1100 metres in elevation.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alps conifer and mixed forests</span> Ecoregion in Central Europe

The Alps conifer and mixed forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion in central Europe. It extends along the Alps mountains through portions of France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria, and Slovenia. The ecoregion extends from the lower slopes of the Alps to its peaks, which include Mont Blanc, at 4,809 m (15,778 ft) the highest peak in the Alps.

References

  1. ↑ Rushforth, Keith (1986) [1980]. Bäume[Pocket Guide to Trees] (in German) (2nd ed.). Bern: Hallwag AG. ISBN   3-444-70130-6.
  2. 1 2 Stace, C. A. (2010). New Flora of the British Isles (Third ed.). Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-70772-5.
  3. ↑ Stull, Gregory W.; Qu, Xiao-Jian; Parins-Fukuchi, Caroline; Yang, Ying-Ying; Yang, Jun-Bo; Yang, Zhi-Yun; Hu, Yi; Ma, Hong; Soltis, Pamela S.; Soltis, Douglas E.; Li, De-Zhu; Smith, Stephen A.; Yi, Ting-Shuang; et al. (2021). "Gene duplications and phylogenomic conflict underlie major pulses of phenotypic evolution in gymnosperms". Nature Plants. 7 (8): 1015–1025. bioRxiv   10.1101/2021.03.13.435279 . doi:10.1038/s41477-021-00964-4. PMID   34282286. S2CID   232282918.
  4. ↑ Stull, Gregory W.; et al. (2021). "main.dated.supermatrix.tree.T9.tre". Figshare. doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.14547354.v1.
  5. ↑ Gernandt, D. S.; Liston, A. (1999). "Internal transcribed spacer region evolution in Larix and Pseudotsuga (Pinaceae)". American Journal of Botany . Botanical Society of America. 86 (5): 711–723. doi: 10.2307/2656581 . JSTOR   2656581. PMID   10330075.
  6. ↑ Semerikov, Vladimir L.; Lascoux, Martin (1999). "Genetic relationship among Eurasian and American Larix species based on allozymes". Heredity. 83: 62–70. doi: 10.1038/sj.hdy.6885310 . PMID   10447704. S2CID   22249365.
  7. ↑ Wei, X.-X.; Wang, X.-Q. (2003). "Phylogenetic split of Larix: evidence from paternally inherited cpDNA trnT-trnF region". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 239 (1–2): 67–77. doi:10.1007/s00606-002-0264-3. S2CID   39213284.
  8. ↑ Wei, X.-X.; Wang, X.-Q. (2004). "Recolonization and radiation in Larix (Pinaceae): evidence from nuclear ribosomal DNA paralogues". Molecular Ecology. 13 (10): 3115–3123. doi:10.1111/j.1365-294X.2004.02299.x. PMID   15367124. S2CID   11329782.
  9. ↑ Gros-Louis, Marie-Claude; Bousquet, Jean; Pâques, Luc E.; Isabel, Nathalie (2005). "Species-diagnostic markers in Larix spp. based on RAPDs and nuclear, cpDNA, and mtDNA gene sequences, and their phylogenetic implications". Tree Genetics & Genomes. 1 (2): 50–63. doi:10.1007/s11295-005-0007-z. S2CID   44245647.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Larix Mill". Plants of the World Online. London: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  11. ↑ Smith, Nathan (2017). "British larch-associated Basidiomycota: a review". Field Mycology. 18 (3): 98–103. doi: 10.1016/j.fldmyc.2017.07.010 .
  12. ↑ European larch canker Natural Resources Canada, accessed 23 April 2021
  13. ↑ "Find a specific tree pest or disease". GOV.UK.
  14. ↑ "Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine". www.gov.ie.
  15. ↑ "Thousands of Afan Forest trees planted after infected larch". BBC. 21 February 2015. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  16. ↑ European Standard EN 350-2 (1994); Durability of Wood and Wood-based Products – Natural Durability of Solid Wood: Guide to natural durability and treatability of selected wood species of importance in Europe
  17. ↑ Stutley, Margaret (2003). Shamanism : An Introduction. London: Routledge, 2003.

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