American larch #1

Eckhoffw

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Decided I’d go ahead and start a thread for this Tamarack tree I’ve bought from Menards.
As purchased spring of ‘20546D0BB8-5C30-481E-BAD0-D8B9643586BE.jpegFull flush in summer.
D61CAD91-50D5-461A-9368-A3F3780CF627.jpegAutumn color. A109A76B-705C-4DAD-9DA1-D4091B56A345.jpeg
Have done some directional pruning and a bit of wires.
Almost formal upright. No?
Today.
A30C5000-567D-4AA2-A274-D422A778996B.jpeg
need to get after the roots next spring!!
 

Eckhoffw

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No kidding. I never see larch.
They are pretty available around here, but I haven’t since seen one at the big box stores.
Still haven’t attempted to collect any from northwest Wisconsin yet. My father has a hobby farm by Amery WI. Many Larch bogs around there.
Should really suit up and give it a go.
 
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They are pretty available around here, but I haven’t since seen one at the big box stores.
Still haven’t attempted to collect any from northwest Wisconsin yet. My father has a hobby farm by Amery WI. Many Larch bogs around there.
Should really suit up and give it a go.
Take me with you! Would love to give it a try up there.
 

vancehanna

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I would purchase a few smaller ones approx 1-2’ high maybe 4 yr seedlings girth anywhere from pencil to 1” .let me know for Spring time thanks
 

AlainK

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Great starter tree ! I love all species of larch.

To be on the safe side, the ones I know (Larix kaempferi and Larix x eurolepis) are best repotted just before budbreak.

Wiring down the branches would make it "older". The hardest part is to select which branches to keep, and which ones to remove...
 
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Oh yeah? Where are you at?
I plan on scouting out the trees I want the 1st weekend of December. I Will just be Flagging trees, and will dig in spring. 😀
That would be the plan for me as well, just on the hunt with the idea of spring collection. I’m down in Milwaukee, and still very new to the hobby (e.g. still no clue how to say, get a permit for fine woody material anywhere in WI 😂)—but collecting larch from an upstate bog is on my bucket list for sure!
I have a free day on the 4th, though my wife might look at me cross eyed if I tell her I want to burn a day away from the kids to go looking for trees in Amery haha.
Are you central state? I would definitely buy collected material from you too!
 

Eckhoffw

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That would be the plan for me as well, just on the hunt with the idea of spring collection. I’m down in Milwaukee, and still very new to the hobby (e.g. still no clue how to say, get a permit for fine woody material anywhere in WI 😂)—but collecting larch from an upstate bog is on my bucket list for sure!
I have a free day on the 4th, though my wife might look at me cross eyed if I tell her I want to burn a day away from the kids to go looking for trees in Amery haha.
Are you central state? I would definitely buy collected material from you too!
Great. I will keep you in mind, and let you know this spring when I’ll be out to dig.

I live in the twin cities area, so I’m not there a whole lot. It’s about 1.5 hrs from my house. I’ll send you pictures of what I see!
 

Eckhoffw

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Great starter tree ! I love all species of larch.

To be on the safe side, the ones I know (Larix kaempferi and Larix x eurolepis) are best repotted just before budbreak.

Wiring down the branches would make it "older". The hardest part is to select which branches to keep, and which ones to remove...
I believe this to be Tamarack/ Larix x Laracina. I’ve heard of people successfully collecting these in fall, but I’ll wait till spring for digging and repotting.
 

Corrado

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many of those well placed branches may end up too thick to scale against the trunk. What I watch out for is the fresh new buds next to the branches but also on the trunk that can develeope after the trunk has thickened .
 

Eckhoffw

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many of those well placed branches may end up too thick to scale against the trunk. What I watch out for is the fresh new buds next to the branches but also on the trunk that can develeope after the trunk has thickened .
Yes I’ll have to keep an eye on em as they thicken.
For now, I’m letting the tree grow up while eliminating branches/shoots that take a bad direction.
When/if the trunk gets to desired thickness
I’m sure there will be choices to make!
 

Eckhoffw

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I Visited the farm and tamarack bog today.
It is a very bizarre place to walk and explore. The ground was wintered or frozen enough to be dry, but remained very soft and squishy.
0E9ADE8E-21FF-475B-9772-2295C319E7C5.jpeg7DC131D1-B01B-4634-AEE2-FF1C23D06BA0.jpeg

Looked like sphagnum -or similar- moss covered much of the ground.
Where there was a tree, was a mound of moss at its base. A0C2E0E5-6058-4CA7-99A1-BDC3396AF95C.jpeg6D931594-4DCE-484E-91F2-90D3476D4781.jpeg
Sorry for the lack of contrast in the pictures. Very grey day, and all the lichen on the trees camouflage them a lot!

I decided to Mark some candidates for spring. 32E0902F-C393-49D6-ADF3-42BBA0866590.jpeg320CFDF3-58F6-4031-A8FA-D67951083D21.jpeg4A6DBD71-F0FA-4C0E-8955-A7A25E696001.jpeg0CCEA05A-BCC4-45BB-A225-A3704F66DEC3.jpeg
It’s hard to tell how much trunk lies within these moss mounds. Looks like some symbiotic action taking place here for sure.

I would be VERY interested in any information or experiences with what’s going on here, and what to expect when collecting.
 
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Beautiful finds! Great candidates with tons of movement. Wish I could’ve come!

I don’t have much experience with tamarack bogs, but from my anecdotal understanding the roots thrive in the sphagnum and suffocate in the peat bog below — maybe they’ve built up root mass and have mounded up over the years?

Keep me in the loop if you wind up with more than you want!
 
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