American Larch; Tamarack or Hackmatack Larix americana
A large tree, 50 to 100 feet high. The bark is rough with small, flat scales. The stems are pliable, and are covered with knobby buds. The cones are small, not more than half an inch long.
In Massachusetts the larch does not attain a great height, but in cold Northern swamps it grows to be a large tree. It is not dependent on a wet situation, but grows well after being transplanted into upland soil. Its growth is rapid, and it is often chosen for “quick effects” in landscape gardening,—a choice which is to be regretted for the most part, as few trees have so little beauty as the larch.
During a brief interval in the early spring, when the first young leaves fringe the branches in delicate green, this tree is really lovely, but after that there is little to attract us in its stiff, formal outline and dark foliage, and in winter it is most unprepossessing.
The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and very durable. It is used for the knees of vessels and ship timbers, for posts, telegraph poles, and railway ties.
The generic name, Larix, comes from the Celtic word lar, meaning fat, and was given to this genus on account of the resin produced by the tree. The larch is found throughout the Northeastern States.
European Larch Larix europæa
A large tree, 80 to 100 feet high. The branches are more pendulous, and the cones are twice as large as those of our native species.
The cones of both the American and European larches hang on the branches through the winter, and as those of the European are an inch or more long and about as broad, while those of the American are half that size, the trees are easily distinguished from each other. Even in the accompanying photographs this difference is discernible.
