Leaves simple, scattered along the season's shoots, clustered on the short, thick dwarf branches, about an inch long, pale green, needle-shaped; apex obtuse; sessile.
Inflorescence.—March to April. Flowers lateral, solitary, erect; the sterile from leafless, the fertile from leafy dwarf branches; sterile roundish, sessile; anthers yellow: fertile oblong, short-stalked; bracts crimson or red.
Fruit.—Cones upon dwarf branches, erect or inclining upwards, ovoid to cylindrical, ½-¾ of an inch long, purplish or reddish brown while growing, light brown at maturity, persistent for at least a year; scales thin, obtuse to truncate; edge entire, minutely toothed or erose; seeds small, winged.
Horticultural Value.—Hardy in New England; grows in any good soil, preferring moist locations; the formal outline of the young trees becomes broken, irregular, and picturesque with age, making the mature tree much more attractive than the European species common to cultivation. Rarely for sale in nurseries, but obtainable from collectors. To be successfully transplanted, it must be handled when dormant. Propagated from seed.
Note.—The European species, with which the mature plant is often confused, has somewhat longer leaves and larger cones; a form common in cultivation has long, pendulous branches.
Plate I.—Larix Americana.
| 1. Branch with sterile and fertile flowers. |
| 2. Sterile flowers. |
| 3. Different views of stamens. |
| 4. Ovuliferous scale with ovules. |
| 5. Fruiting branch. |
| 6. Open cone. |
| 7. Cone-scale with seeds. |
| 8. Leaf. |
| 9. Cross-section of leaf. |