I visited this tree today...another Pennsylvania larch. The one I posted earlier was found a 3 hour drive away, near Lock Haven. I'd hoped they might be a southern (relatively) stand of L. laricina, but they are probably just escapes from a forestry planting. This is near I-95 and the Delaware river. https://www.pabigtrees.com/tree-listings/TR20101025183444083 Here is a street view link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/zzLc8PU7VNxoCvni8 Here is a pic of the branchlets and some cones. The large reddish buds were notable to me. Neither of my larches looks like that, although now that I checked, one seems to have bigger buds than the other. Here is a closeup, 1200 dpi scan of a seed. Length including wing is about 10mm. It is listed as a Larix laricina. But I'm not sure...I don't have a closeup pic of the cones at the moment, but I measured a couple as 36mmX28mm and 38mmX28mm. That's too big for L. laricina, right?
Ditto to Japanese Larch (Larix kaempferi). From the street view pic, an obvious planted tree; the stone slab may give some clues as to why it is there.
Thanks Pineresin ;-). I have a cynical take on the misidentification. It's so obviously not a L. laricina, I wonder if it was IDed as such just to get the park some cred in the horticulturally competitive world of Southeastern PA. (compared to many parts of the country, anyhow) Because as merely a Japanese Larch, it wouldn't be very notable at all, I've seen several bigger and better ones elsewhere. So someone at this facility wanted to be able to claim to have a 'champion' tree on display. But I've been accused of being too cynical at times, and maybe I am being so this time! Can you believe I forgot to look at the damn stone slab! Next time - I have family up there so can visit again later this year. If it were in a grove of larches I'd want to get seed, but as it is I have thrown away the ones I collected away already. It's going to have terrible inbreeding being a lone specimen like that.
I think I'd be even more cynical on its misidentification - it'll have been done by someone who used a book of North American trees that didn't mention exotic species at all. What isn't in the book, doesn't exist . . . :-)
Thanks! As you say, nothing specifically to do with the tree. But the 1925 erection date would be about right for the tree's age; I wouldn't be surprised if it was planted at the same ceremony as the stone being put up. Doesn't explain why they chose a non-native tree for it though!!
Mislabeling of nursery stock is not unusual, a tamarack may have been looked for and a Japanese larch supplied instead as that species. Perhaps even due to the involved production operation having been sold incorrect seeds.
