Identifying Conifers with Leaves in Rosettes

In winter it has to be one of the (evergreen) cedars, which have stiff needles and large cones: either the very common Deodar with long (up to 5cm) rather drooping needles and descending shoot-tips, the equally common Atlas Cedar, with steeply rising branches when young, and usually seen as the blue-foliaged f. glauca, or the less common Cedar of Lebanon which has distinctive flat foliage plates when mature.

In other seasons it could also be one of the (deciduous) larches, which have soft needles: European Larch which has tall cones with straight scales, Japanese Larch which has rounder cones whose scale tips curve outwards, or their hybrid, Dunkeld Larch, which has cones which are intermediate.

 
 

---

Click on an orange link to display the associated image; click on the image to see the larger parent image in a separate window

Copyright © 2007 Philip Brassett