Western Larch

(Larix occidentalis)

Color Photographs: Rick Wallace, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Western Larch (Larix occidentalis)

Identifying Characters: The clustered needles of the larches and the spiny appearance of the cones will separate this species from all others except Subalpine Larch.

Similar Species: The cones of Western Larch are 1 to 1.5 inches in length. In contrast the cones of Subalpine Larch are longer (1.5 to 2 inches. Subalpine Larch normally occurs near tree line, but Western Larch is found at lower elevations.

Measurements: Western Larch is a tall, thin, conical tree normally reaching 100 to 180 feet in height, although rare individuals are over 200 feet. Diameter at breast height ranges between 1.5 to 3 feet.

Cones: Cones 1 to 1.5 inches long, ovoid, and upright on the branches on short stalks; long, pointed cone brachts projecting beyond the apices of the cone scales, cones appearing spiny.

Needles: Needles deciduous, 1 to 1.5 inches long, thin; needles in clusters; needles light green (turning yellow in the fall before falling), 3 angled in cross-section, stiff, and sharp-pointed.

Bark: Red-brown, scaly, becoming deeply furrowed into flat ridges with overlapping plates in older individuals.

Native Range: Western Larch grows in the Upper Columbia River Basin of northwestern Montana, northern and west central Idaho, northeastern Washington, and southeastern British Columbia; along the east slopes of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and north-central Oregon; and in the Blue and Wallowa Mountains of southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon. (Silvics of North America. 1990. Agriculture Handbook 654.)

Habitat: Western Larch normally occurs on mountain slopes and in valleys on a wide variety of well drained soils.