Larix kaempferi Blue Dwarf - Larch

The Larix kaempferi 'Blue Dwarf', also called the Ball Larch, is a dwarf form of the Japanese larch. This small dwarf conifer with a globose habit, whose summit is slightly hollowed out, forms a compact ball dressed in bluish green needle foliage, taking on flamboyant shades in autumn, in orange yellow. With fairly slow growth, it will be perfect in a rock garden, on a terrace, and lends itself well to the art of bonsai. Hardy, but sensitive to late frosts, it appreciates light, slightly calcareous, fresh soil, and a sunny exposure.

The Japanese larch, Larix kaempferi also known as Larix leptolepis is a large Japanese conifer with a conical habit that can reach 30 m (98 ft 5 in) in height, with deciduous foliage. It is native to the mountains of the Hondo island, at an altitude of between 1,300 and 2,900 m, but it adapts very well to cultivation in a plain. It belongs to the family of pinaceae, such as pines, firs and spruces. It is a species very close to the European Larix decidua.

The Larix kaempheri 'Blue Dwarf', after 10 years, forms a small rounded and compact bush measuring 70 cm (27.6 in) in all directions. Its growth is quite slow, but faster than that of the European larch. At ripeness, it sometimes reaches 1.20 m (3 ft 11 in) in all directions. Its branches are horizontal and thick, gracefully trailing, giving it a very graphic aspect in winter. In spring, the branches are dressed in tender water green needle foliage, and are inserted in rosettes on the short branches, or individually on  long branches. They then take on a bluish-green hue before turning golden yellow and orange in autumn. They are grouped in tufts compound of 35 to 40 needles. Its old branches are covered by a brown-red or orange-red bark that cracks into scales with age.

The 'Blue Dwarf' ball larch is a small conifer of great originality and low demand, easy to grow in a rock garden, provided the soil remains quite fresh and it is placed in a sunny exposure. It will also be adopted near a swimming pool, as it goes well with geometric lines and masonry works. It is also easily grown in pots to decorate the terrace or balcony. It can also be made into a delightful bonsai. The graphic qualities of conifers naturally impose themselves in a contemporary garden, which prefers the aesthetics of shapes, silhouettes and textures to the waltz of flowerings. These plants structurally mark a bed, line paths, or border a terrace, easily substituting the strong presence of the pruned boxwood. They associate with the complementary temperaments of disheveled grasses and heathers. The key is to play with volumes and colours.

Advice: Water regularly during the first two years, and in cases of prolonged drought. Although it tolerates a soil that is occasionally dry in a cool climate, this conifer will be disappointing in excessively dry and hot summers.