Larix occidentalis Nutt.

vernacular western larch — species · Pinaceae

USDA: LAOC
GBIF: 2686270
Rank: species

western larch (Larix occidentalis) — Platephotograph · Creed ClaytonCC BY-NC-ND source · iNaturalist ↗

§2Habit & range

Growth habit: Tree
Duration: Perennial
Group: Gymnosperm
Family: Pinaceae Spreng. ex Rudolphi
Genus: Larix

§2a

Native status, by region

CAN Canada Native
L48 Lower 48 States Native

§2b

County-level range

· 6 counties across 1 state

Legend Native · 6 Introduced · 0 Both · 0 Hover a county for detail.

§3Cultivation specs · USDA

Recorded by the USDA Plant Materials Program.

§3a

Tolerances

Drought: Low
Shade: High
Moisture use: Low
Fire: Low
Salinity: None
Anaerobic: None
CaCO₃: Low
Hedging: None

§3b

Climate & soil

Cold tolerance: -43 °F minimum
Frost-free days: 60 min.
Precipitation: 13–50 in/yr
pH range: 6–7
Root depth: 20 in min.
Fertility need: Low
Soil texture: coarse, medium

§3c

Form & growth

Growth form: Single Stem
Growth rate: Rapid
Lifespan: Long
Mature height: 200 ft
Height @ 20 y: 40 ft
Foliage texture: Fine
Foliage colour: Yellow-Green
Porosity (summer): Moderate
Porosity (winter): Porous
Flower colour: Red
Fruit colour: Brown
Fire resistant: Yes
N fixation: None
Toxicity: None

§3d

Reproduction

Bloom period: Spring
Seed abundance: High
Seed begins: Summer
Seed ends: Fall
Spread rate: Moderate
Stratify: Yes
Seeds / lb: 143,040
Propagation: seed, cuttings, bare root, container

§3e

Use & availability

Commercial availability: Field Collections Only
Nursery stock: Yes
Browse palatability: Low
Graze palatability: Low
Palatable, human: No
Lumber: Yes
Fuelwood: Medium
Christmas tree: No

§4Counties, by state

Recorded in 6 counties across 1 state.

Montana view state ↗ 6 N ▾

§5Sources & provenance

USDA PLANTS

Symbol, taxonomy, distribution, cultivation specs, native status. Public domain.

plants.usda.gov/LAOC ↗

GBIF Backbone

Canonical taxonomic identity, synonym resolution, cross-refs. CC0.

gbif.org/species/2686270 ↗

Record version

Cached and built locally. Source version on this record:

usda-plants-mt-2026-05-25

fetched 2026-05-25T18:27:19Z