someone.. i cant recall who .. calls that.. wait for it .... tree time ... lol ..

Thanks Dave!

Can I take how much it grows next year and multiply by ten to get the mature height? ;-)

ken, I'll enter that day on my alarms calendar so I don't forget. haha!

actually .. though david is spot on with the usual 10 years ... you ought to know much sooner ... by comparing annual growth rated in 3 to 5 years .. dont you think ...

but then.. what will it look like mature.. well .. back to the 10 years ...

ken

Now that I know there's a possibility for it to be a 'full sized', I won't be planting it in the yard until I see some indication of dwarfism. Even half size of species would be cause for happy dance. Either way it will be fun to see it bud out over the next couple springs even if it's in a pot. :-)

Larix larinca set a terminal bud at 22" tall.

It could stretch a bit more before hardening off but I think it's done with any growth spurts for the season.

Initially dwarf seedling variants need to be watched for extended periods because they may throw off part of the dwarfness later. With dwarfness being a fatal flaw in a forest setting, one where trees are competing for light.

Thanks Embo.

So far, the main leader has grown much but the lower branches only grew an inch or so and only near the bottom of the trunk. There are a few 'tufts' of needles above the lower branches and then buds above, all the way to the top.

Could the central growth be an example of normal tree growth while the bottom branches are exhibiting features of being dwarf?

'Could the central growth be an example of normal tree growth while the bottom branches are exhibiting features of being dwarf?'

Silly of me when I think about it. Witches brooms appear all the time on a 'normal' tree so why would this one be any different?

I can only hope. :-)

9-3-21 update:

fwiw: The little Larix laricina continues to put on over 2 ft. of growth a year (24" last season, 30" this season).

Genetics could still hold some surprises. :-)

8-22-22

Update:

The Larix l. continues to grow incredibly fast imo. This season, it put on a full 48" of growth on the main leader and hasn't put a terminal bud on yet. This was under near drought conditions with watering at the base only for weeks at a time (sandy soil).

I believe any genetic mutations for this one will not be manifested as dwarf tendencies but could still produce a witch's broom sometime down the road (the parent tree was 30 ft. tall when I found the smallish ~2 ft. dia. broom on it).

I just ran across this thread by chance so good time for a final update for the season.

(I have a stake on the tree to keep it vertical, after high winds tilted the tree a few weeks ago).

Larix laricina 'Larry' propagated with seed procured from a witch's broom. ~8 ft. tall.

:-)

That's almost hard to believe... Hope it hardens off enough that the wind doesn't rip it off.

Not sure what happened to the larix, it might've broken a root during the big wind last spring.

I staked it immediately but think I took the stake off too soon. I didn't notice the 'tilt' had returned and let the leader grow straight up, at a small angle to the trunk. nbd but you know me, mister perfectionist, I had to put a stick on the leader to pull it to the same angle as the trunk.

It'll be fine and by the end of August the stick will come off. :^)

You were right beng, it's not quite that tall, yet.

I chose where I thought last year's terminal bud was and missed it. Also, the tree was 52" tall at the start of the season and I guessed, so that threw my calculations off a bit.

So, I went all scientific and got my tape measure :-) and found the correct spot to measure from on last years end of growth (blue arrow). I thought it was further down the first time.

Anyways, just for the record, it measured 42" of new growth so far this season and if last year is any indication, it could pick up another +-4" before end of growing season.

Still pretty good as the references I could find say 2-1/2 ft. growth annually (30").

FWIW: It's a lightweight, thin aluminum tube I used for a stick, so it doesn't add much weight to the leader when the wind blows, and it's tied further down the trunk for strength.

Glad we got that cleared up. 8^)

6-7-2023:

The top didn't have any problems, even with the early winter, wet heavy snow, bent over trees, event we had.

The tree does have a little lean to it, looking at it from the side but that helps inhibit the 'Lolly pop' effect of the trees here. :-)

Planted May 25th 2020, as a homegrown, 6" tall seedling, Larix Laricina:

First female cones this year.

9-13-2023: Season end update.

Started from seed in January 2020. Planted outside May 25th, 2020.

Larix laricina: 10ft. 8 inches tall.

:-)

They do tend to cone very early.