Arauks pine, "riddle of monkeys", Chilean araucaria - all these are the names of one tree, which belongs to the oldest conifers. It grew on our planet thousands of years ago and in its natural form survived to our days only in Australia and South America.
In Europe, this plant was known only in 1782 thanks to the efforts of the botanist from Italy H. Molinois. After 16 years (1796), the first tree was planted in England. Another name appeared here - Monkey Puzzle ("riddle of a monkey"). It is quite widespread and entered the botanical dictionaries. Once, a certain owner of a young araucaria, the trunk and branches of which for a long time were completely covered with prickly leaves, showing it to its guests, noted: "Climbing this tree is not easy, it would be a mystery even for monkeys."
The first tree in England lived over a hundred years. Later, Chilean araucaria was widespread in Western Europe. In Russia, it can only be seen in the botanical gardens of the Caucasus and Crimea. In this article we will talk about this exotic plant in more detail.
Chilean Araucaria: Description
This is a very large, up to 60 meters high, dioecious, evergreen, dioecious tree. Under natural conditions, its trunk reaches 1.5 meters in diameter. The plant is frost-resistant: withstands a drop in air temperature to -20 ° C.
Crown
Externally, the tree differs from the usual conifers (spruce, pine). What is the shape of Chilean Araucaria trees? In young plants, the crown has a round-conical shape; at an older age, it becomes an umbrella. It is formed by long, thick, outstretched, slightly sagging at the base, and then branches rising upward. The lower branches lie on the ground.
They tend to fall with age. Adult samples have lateral branches located 6–7 in whorls. They are spread out horizontally or slightly hanging down, which can often be observed in old trees. The crown takes on a flat-umbrella shape several years after planting. It is located on top of the trunk.
Trunk
Chilean Araucaria, whose photo you can see in this article, has a straight, rounded and very slender trunk. It is covered with a resinous thick bark of dark brown color. On it, longitudinal cracks are clearly visible, emerging from the bases of the discarded, dead branches. Wrinkled bark, exfoliating. The annual growth of young plants reaches 45 cm, and then it slows down to 10-15 cm. Trees are considered to be young until the age of 50.
Araucaria wood has a yellowish white color. It is used in construction. Its resin has found application in folk medicine.
Leaves
Chilean Araucaria has large needles. The length of the needles is 3-5 cm with the same width. They sit tight on the branches for 10-15 years. The foliage is very stiff, with a pointed top, smooth. The upper surface is slightly convex, with oval lines on both sides. Foliage densely spirally covers branches. On both sides it is painted in the same dark green color, shiny.
Amazingly, the leaves of this tree are so spiky and hard that the birds do not even sit on its branches. The leaves of this tree live for about forty years. A feature of the plant are microstrobils. They are single, axillary (often assembled in groups at the top of the branch for 2-6 pieces). They are cylindrical, sometimes almost oval, at the base surrounded by vegetative leaves.
Bloom
Chilean araucaria blooms in June - July. Male flowers at the ends of the shoots are collected in small bunches that remain on the tree for several months.
Bumps
Huge cones of Chilean araucaria are painted brown, spherical in shape, with a diameter of up to 18 cm and weighing up to one and a half kilograms. Initially, they are covered with elongated, long (up to 3 cm) and slightly bent upward points of the scales, which then breaks off.
Female cones have a spherical-conical shape, large (up to 17 cm in diameter), are located on the upper sides of stronger branches. After pollination, they remain green for two years. On adult trees there are about 30 cones, each of which contains approximately 300 very large seeds. After ripening, the cone on the tree crumbles.
The ripened seed is a little compressed, oblong, up to four long and up to two centimeters thick. At the edges of the seeds you can see narrow stripes - the remains of the wing.
Using
The seeds are very oily, and the local population uses them for food. They have an unusual pleasant taste, so they are often used fried or in cheese dishes.
Chilean araucaria was widely used in landscape design: due to its unusual shape, the tree is often used in parks and gardens.
Chilean Araucaria at home
In indoor conditions, araucaria grows to 180 cm. To grow this unusual plant, you need a light, in the extreme case, a slightly shaded place. The room should be cool, with good air circulation. This tree will not grow in modern rooms with central heating.
Araucaria needs a lot of space to grow and develop. In the summer, this tree is quite comfortable in the fresh air, but provided that it is protected from direct sunlight. Often it is a decoration of the landscape on the plot of the Araucaria Chilean. In open ground, even with late transplantation, the plant develops more intensively.
Temperature
The required temperature for araucaria is + 10–12 ° C. Even a slight increase (up to +16 ° C) of the plant does not tolerate well: the needles begin to turn yellow.
The soil
Chilean Araucaria is not too demanding on the composition of the soil. As a rule, the usual mixture for indoor plants is prepared for her. An acidic peat-containing substrate may be added to it. It can be purchased at a specialty store as a primer for rhododendrons.
Humidity
In rooms where the temperature exceeds the recommended, the plant should be sprayed three times a day. In cool rooms, this procedure should be carried out no more than once every two days. The soil in the pot must be covered with sphagnum moss, which must be regularly moistened.
Watering
In the summer, watering should be plentiful. Do not allow the soil to dry out. At the same time, excessive overmoistening can also harm the plant: excess moisture around the roots can lead to yellowness and decay of the needles. Watering is carried out only after the topsoil has dried.
In winter, watering is minimized, however, and at this time, the drying of an earthen coma is unacceptable. In addition, hard water should not be used for irrigation. Recommended well-defended, rain or boiled water.
Indoor Chilean araucaria lives up to ten years, subject to conditions of detention. Yellowed needles indicate that the air in the room is too dry. Consider a reliable support for the plant. Fertilizers for azaleas are suitable for feeding. They are used between April and August with an interval of three weeks. Araucaria does not need organic fertilizers.
Transfer
After acquiring a young plant, carefully remove it from the pot, being careful not to damage the earthen lump. If the roots are too tightly braided, then after 7-10 days it is necessary to transfer the tree (without changing the soil) into a larger pot and add a substrate for conifers. The next transplant will be needed only after 3-4 years, when the roots are tightly braided again.
