Western larch

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Western larch
Larix occidentalis 16822.JPG
William O. Douglas Wilderness
Naches Valley, WA
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Gymnospermae
Division: Pinophyta
Class: Pinopsida
Order: Pinales
Family: Pinaceae
Genus: Larix
Species:
L. occidentalis
Binomial name
Larix occidentalis
Larix occidentalis range map 4.png
Natural range of Larix occidentalis

The western larch (Larix occidentalis) is a species of larch native to the mountains of western North America (Pacific Northwest, Inland Northwest); 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. [2] [3]

Contents

Description

The tree is a large deciduous conifer reaching 30 to 60 meters (98 to 197 feet) tall, with a trunk up to 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) diameter; the bark ranges from orangish to purplish brown. [4] The crown is narrow conic; the main branches are level to upswept, with the side branches often drooping. The shoots are dimorphic, with growth divided into long shoots (typically 10 to 50 centimeters (4 to 20 in) long) and bearing several buds, and short shoots only 1 to 2 millimeters (1⁄32 to 3⁄32 in) long with only a single bud. The leaves are needle-like, light green, 2 to 5 cm (3⁄4 to 2 in) long, soft [4] and very slender; they turn bright yellow in the fall, leaving the pale orange-brown shoots bare until the next spring. [5]

The seed cones are ovoid-cylindric, 2 to 5 cm (3⁄4 to 2 in) long, with 40 to 80 seed scales; each scale bearing an exserted 4 to 8 mm (3⁄16 to 5⁄16 in) bract. The cones are green [4] to reddish purple when immature, turning brown and the scales opening flat or reflexed to release the seeds when mature, four to six months after pollination. The old cones commonly remain on the tree for many years, turning dull gray-black. [5]

Individual specimens can live centuries, even up to a millennium. [4] The largest known specimen is about 1,000 years old, 50 m (160 ft) tall and over 2 m (7 ft) in diameter with a 10 m (34 ft) crown, located at Seeley Lake, Montana. [4] [5]

Distribution

Western larch grows almost exclusively in the drainage of the Columbia River, from the east of the Cascade Range to the west of the Continental Divide. [4] It covers the regions from around Kamloops, British Columbia, to Weiser, Idaho, and Central Oregon. [4] It appears on ranges including the Blue Mountains and others in southeast BC and northwest Montana, usually on moist slopes up to 1,800 m (5,900 ft) above sea level. [4] It can grow from elevations between 500 and 2,400 m (1,600 and 7,900 ft) and is very cold tolerant, able to survive winter temperatures down to about −50 °C (−58 °F). It only grows on well-drained soils, unable to thrive on waterlogged ground. [6]

Ecology

Western larch grows more quickly than many associated trees, as it needs to because larch is shade intolerant. With its thick bark, nonflammable foliage and protective cones, the species is very fire resistant. [4] In the late 20th century, after wildfires had been suppressed for almost a century, larches at Seeley Lake and Glacier National Park were endangered by major fires enabled by fuel ladder; normally smaller fires would have depleted the fuel. [4] In more recent years, many smaller fires have been allowed to take their course. [4]

Grouse browse the tree's leaves and buds. [7] The seeds are an important substitute winter food for some birds, notably the pine siskin but also the redpoll, and white-winged crossbill. This is frequently during times when other conifer cones that are a more preferred diet are in short supply. [8] [9] [10] Woodpeckers utilize the heart rot of older specimens to make openings, which are used by various small animals. [4]

Assisted migration

In 2010, the Government of British Columbia implemented an assisted migration program of western larch to a new habitat in northern British Columbia, about 1000 kilometers north of its current range. [11] Assisted migration of Canadian forests had been proposed as an adaptation measure in response to climate change. Indeed, as average temperatures rise, the optimal climate conditions for trees species are also moving North. Research had shown that western larch trees have no trouble growing in northern BC, an area whose climatic conditions are predicted to match the western larch's historical range by 2030. [3]

British Columbia started seeding western larch trees in northern BC in the early 2010s. This was the first assisted migration program for a North American tree. The western larch was selected for because of its significant commercial importance and the fear that climate change and parasites such as the mountain pine beetle would considerably diminish its supply. To pre-empt opposition from biologists and other groups, the government avoided making public consultation on the program. Instead, they framed the policy as an introduction of a non-exotic species to a similar environment, and implemented the program through the province's existing legal and regulatory framework. [3]

Foresters in the United States have also initiated "experimental treatments" of larch-dominated national forests in Montana. [12] However, if some "aggressively warming climate scenarios" actually unfold, foresters will need to let go of any expectations of helping this species maintain a presence south of the Canadian border. [13]

Uses

Indigenous peoples applied the resinous gum to injuries and chewed it to treat sore throat. [4] Some also ate the cambium and sap; [14] the Kutenai and Salish peoples of Montana in particular collected the sap. [4] A medicinal tea was made from the bark or foliage. [4] Some Plateau Indian tribes drank an infusion from the young shoots to treat tuberculosis and laryngitis. [15]

The sweetish galactan of the sap can be made into baking powder and medicine. [7] An extract of the tree is sold as a health supplement. [4] The water-soluble arabinogalactan is used in food, medicine, ink, and paint. [4]

The wood is tough and durable, but also flexible in thin strips, and is particularly valued for yacht building; wood used for this must be free of knots, and can only be obtained from old trees that were pruned when young to remove side branches. Small larch poles are widely used for rustic fencing. [16] The wood is highly prized as firewood in the Pacific Northwest where it is often called "tamarack," although it is a different species than the tamarack larch. The wood burns with a sweet fragrance and a distinctive popping noise. [17]

Western larch is used for the production of Venice turpentine. [18]

Related Research Articles

<i>Pseudotsuga menziesii <span style="font-style:normal;">var.</span> glauca</i> Variety of plants

Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca, or Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir, is an evergreen conifer native to the interior mountainous regions of western North America, from central British Columbia and southwest Alberta in Canada southward through the United States to the far north of Mexico. The range is continuous in the northern Rocky Mountains south to eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, Idaho, western and south-central Montana and western Wyoming, but becomes discontinuous further south, confined to "sky islands" on the higher mountains in Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico, with only very isolated small populations in eastern Nevada, westernmost Texas, and northern Mexico. It occurs from 600 m altitude in the north of the range, up to 3,000 m, rarely 3,200 m, in the south. Further west towards the Pacific coast, it is replaced by the related coast Douglas-fir, and to the south, it is replaced by Mexican Douglas-fir in high mountains as far south as Oaxaca. Some botanists have grouped Mexican Douglas-fir with P. menziesii var. glauca, but genetic and morphological evidence suggest that Mexican populations should be considered a different variety.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larch</span> Genus of deciduous conifers in the family Pinaceae

Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus Larix, of the family Pinaceae. Growing from 20 to 45 metres tall, 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.

<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>Thuja plicata</i> Species of conifer

Thuja plicata is a large evergreen coniferous tree in the family Cupressaceae, native to the Pacific Northwest of North America. Its common name is western redcedar in the U.S. or western red cedar in the UK, and it is also called pacific red cedar, giant arborvitae, western arborvitae, just cedar, giant cedar, or shinglewood. It is not a true cedar of the genus Cedrus. T. plicata is the largest species in the genus Thuja, growing up to 70 metres (230 ft) tall and 7 metres (23 ft) in diameter. It mostly grows in areas that experience a mild climate with plentiful rainfall, although it is sometimes present in drier areas on sites where water is available year-round, such as wet valley bottoms and mountain streamsides. The species is shade-tolerant and able to establish in forest understories and is thus considered a climax species. It is a very long-lived tree, with some specimens reaching ages of well over 1,000 years.

<i>Pinus contorta</i> Species of plant

Pinus contorta, with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpine, but is rare in lowland rain forests. Like all pines, it is an evergreen conifer.

<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>Abies grandis</i> Species of conifer tree

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<i>Tsuga mertensiana</i> Species of tree found in western North America

Tsuga mertensiana, known as mountain hemlock, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, found between Southcentral Alaska and south-central California.

<i>Cupressus arizonica</i> Species of conifer

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<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Larix Arboretum</span>

The International Larix Arboretum is a small arboretum of 1.2 acres (4,900 m2) dedicated to the scientific study of the larch (Larix) species. It is located within the Coram Experimental Forest, 30 yards SE of the Hungry Horse Ranger station at 10 Hungry Horse Drive Hungry Horse, Montana. The Arboretum is open to the public, without charge, during daylight hours from April to October.

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

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<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.

Forest migration is the movement of large seed plant dominated communities in geographical space over time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Assisted migration of forests in North America</span> Human-facilitated forest migration process

Assisted migration is the movement of populations or species by humans from one territory to another in response to climate change. This is the definition offered in a nontechnical document published by the United States Forest Service in 2023, suggesting that this form of climate adaptation "could be a proactive, pragmatic tool for building climate resilience in our landscapes."

References

  1. ↑ Farjon, A. (2013). "Larix occidentalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2013: e.T42315A2971858. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42315A2971858.en . Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  2. ↑ Rehfeldt, Gerald E.; Jaquish, Barry C. (March 2010). "Ecological impacts and management strategies for western larch in the face of climate-change". Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. 15 (3): 283–306. doi:10.1007/s11027-010-9217-2. ISSN   1381-2386. S2CID   154285038.
  3. 1 2 3 Klenk, Nicole L. (March 1, 2015). "The development of assisted migration policy in Canada: An analysis of the politics of composing future forests". Land Use Policy. 44: 101–109. doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2014.12.003. ISSN   0264-8377.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Arno, Stephen F.; Hammerly, Ramona P. (2020) [1977]. Northwest Trees: Identifying & Understanding the Region's Native Trees (field guide ed.). Seattle: Mountaineers Books. pp. 70–76. ISBN   978-1-68051-329-5. OCLC   1141235469.
  5. 1 2 3 "Larix occidentalis". Gymnosperm Database. February 26, 2004. Archived from the original on March 14, 2006. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  6. ↑ Lowery, David P. (February 27, 1985). "Western Larch (Larix occidentalis Nutt.): An American Wood" (pdf). Fs-243. Missoula, MT: USFS: Forestry Sciences Laboratory. 243– via USDA.
  7. 1 2 Whitney, Stephen (1985). Western Forests (The Audubon Society Nature Guides). New York: Knopf. p.  363. ISBN   0-394-73127-1.
  8. ↑ "Pine Siskin: Life History". allaboutbirds.org. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Common Redpoll: Life History". allaboutbirds.org. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  10. ↑ "White-winged Crossbill: Life History". allaboutbirds.org. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  11. ↑ Buranyi, Stephen (January 20, 2016). "How British Columbia Is Moving its Trees". motherboard.com. Vice Media Inc. Archived from the original on April 29, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  12. ↑ Crotteau, Justin S (August 2019). "Initiating Climate Adaptation in a Western Larch Forest" (PDF). Forest Science. 65 (4): 528–536. doi:10.1093/forsci/fxz024.
  13. ↑ Rehfeldt, Gerald E.; Jaquish, Barry C. (March 2010). "Ecological impacts and management strategies for western larch in the face of climate-change". Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. 15 (3): 283–306. doi:10.1007/s11027-010-9217-2. ISSN   1381-2386. S2CID   154285038.
  14. ↑ Turner, Nancy J. Food Plants of Interior First Peoples (Victoria: UBC Press, 1997) ISBN   0-7748-0606-0
  15. ↑ Hunn, Eugene S. (1990). Nch'i-Wana, "The Big River": Mid-Columbia Indians and Their Land. University of Washington Press. p. 354. ISBN   0-295-97119-3.
  16. ↑ "Fence Post 101: Start with a Good Fencing Foundation". zarebasystems.com. Woodstream Corporation. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  17. ↑ "Larch Firewood". firewood-for-life.com. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Turpentine Oil | Applications and Specifications". turpentine-oil.com. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
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