Larch Trees
Larch can grow to 30m and live for hundreds of years but it is mostly grown ion the UK as a crop tree for timber harvesting. The natural durability and beauty of Larch timber make it a favourite for outdoor uses such as cladding, garden structures and even timber framing.
Larch (Larix) trees are native to cold and mountainous areas all over the World and are one of the only deciduous conifer species. In the UK they are pretty much the only brown looking conifers you will see in the winter which makes them easy to spot. The strains we get here are Siberian, European and Japanese Larch which are either ornamental or specifically grown for harvesting in the Forestry industry.
Ecologically Larch provides squirrels and birds with food and shelter. Larch is also used by a variety of moths and butterfly caterpillars and the Larch has a symbiotic relationship with several fungi (a mutually beneficial relationship between the Larch and fungus growing in the root system, not to be confused with pathogens and parasitic fungi growing on the tree itself). Phytophthora ramorum is the pathogen that has badly affected Larch plantations causing many landowners to cull Larch in an attempt to contain the disease.
You can apparently flavour spirits with Larch (a bit like using the Juniper for Gin), we have never tried that but it does smell amazing when cutting and pruning it.
The Tamarack
Tamarack is from North America but an interesting fact is that it is a type of Larch and the name comes from the word akemantak, which translates as “wood used for snowshoes.” As with many tree names this refers to one of the trees ancient uses, in this case a strong, durable and flexible timber.
Larch is one of our best
Owing to its high density Larch has an excellent wear and impact resistance. It's ideal for outdoor use such as cladding, decking and landscaping projects. It will comfortably outlast treated spruce and pine that is more commonly supplied in builders yards etc, and we think there is no comparison in appearance.
Larch timber
Larch has an unusual durability and does not need to be dipped or pressure treated with nasty green tanalith preservative. Larch has a high natural resin content which makes it naturally hardy, resistant to decay and durable outdoors without any treatment. Owing to its high density and resinous properties Larch has an excellent wear and impact resistance (around 550 kg per cbm). It's ideal for outdoor use such as cladding, decking and landscaping projects. It will comfortably outlast treated spruce and pine that is more commonly supplied in builders yards etc, and we think there is no comparison in appearance.
Just leave it untreated and it will naturally turn to a beautiful silvery grey, or we recommend a UV oil such as OSMO if you do want to treat it. Surface cracks, shrinkage and twisting is to be expected with all exterior timber products but with larch it will be less than most other species. Kiln dried it can be used indoors for flooring and furniture.
Our Stock
We stock pre-cut boards which sit air drying in our sheds, these are normally 3m x 25mm x widths of 100mm, 150mm and 200mm. We also hold a more or less permanent stock of Larch logs so that we can cut pretty much any size beams, posts and wider or live edge boards to order.
We can plane Larch to your requirements but do not currently offer profiling, due to the nature of our sourcing of trees we do get some very large Larch logs in so can offer much bigger sections than most, keep an eye on the shop or sign up for updates as new stock becomes available.
