Daurian larch, the photo of which can be seen in our article, is the most "northern" tree in the world. The plant is able to grow in permafrost. Daurian larch is especially common on vast areas in the eastern part of Siberia.
What soil does the plant grow on? What are its properties? What industries use larch wood? About all this later in the article.
Daurian larch - description
This is a tree that can reach a height of about 35 meters. The plant has a straight trunk and a round-pyramidal crown. Daurian larch has widespread branches. Perennial trees often have several peaks.
Young shoots have a pinkish tint. Grayish-brown bark accounts for up to 25% of the trunk volume. Closer to the roots, the plant contains deep cracks.
Daurian larch has soft needles of a bright green hue. The latter has a soft, pliable structure and forms bundles, each of which can contain from 25 to 40 narrowly linear needles.
The plant has oval cones, the length of which reaches 30 mm. Larch seeds ripen in late summer. With the onset of September dry days, plant cones begin to open in large numbers.
Habitat
Daurian larch is a northern species of wood that is common in the Far East. The plant is extremely resistant to aggressive environmental influences. In mountainous, snowy areas, the tree assumes a stunted form with widely spread branches. In the extreme northern part of its habitat, the plant is able to withstand a temperature drop of -60 ° C.
Daurian larch loves to grow in lowlands where there are peaty, swampy soils. However, the plant is able to develop and multiply on stony mountain slopes. In general, adult perennial trees are extremely unpretentious and have impressive durability, surviving up to 500 years or more. This is facilitated by the presence of a well-developed, split root system, due to which the tree is firmly fixed in the soil and easily resists the strongest gusts of a heavy wind.
Daurian larch - properties
Tinctures from the needles of Daurian larch have been used for centuries as an expectorant, mild laxative and diuretic. Alcoholic extracts based on plant shoots are effective in healing purulent wounds, eliminating abscesses.
The crushed bark of the plant has antipyretic properties. You can use it with a poor appetite, problems with the functioning of the pancreas, the development of urological infections.
Decoction from the branches of Daurian larch is known as an effective expectorant. Use it for peptic ulcer of the gastric mucosa, as well as urethritis.
It is proved that preparations made on the basis of needles and bark of a plant are able to withstand the growth of bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus and hemolytic streptococcus.
Growing Features
Daurian larch perfectly transfers movement to a new place of growth. As shoots for transplantation, both annual, young plants, and adult, well-rooted trees are suitable. Regarding the cultivation of plants from seeds, there are some difficulties. In this case, extremely fertile and moist soil is required.
To get the seeds of Daurian larch, it is necessary to have ripe cones that have a light brown tint. They should be collected during the period of decay of the needles. Cones are dried in a well-ventilated area until the scales open. After the seeds fall out, they are collected and laid out on paper bags. In this form, the seeds are kept in the refrigerator until spring warmth.
Before planting Daurian larch from seeds, they are soaked in cold water. As soon as the earth is warmed up properly by the spring sun, the plant is planted in fertile soil to a depth of 5 mm. If the seeds are too deep in the substrate, they are likely to die.
Seedlings of the plant after planting seeds should be expected for several weeks. Young shoots need an abundance of solar heat. Therefore, even with slight shading of the site, they die quickly enough. Watering the plants must be done regularly, avoiding waterlogging of the soil.
