Solved Identify this tree!

Discussion in 'Identification Area' started by Richg, Jun 19, 2025.

  1. Richg

    Richg Apprentice Gardener

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    Hello all, Please excuse if this is obvious as I am completely new to gardening. Could someone tell me the name of this tree and little about it. We want to grow one in our garden. Wondering how long one would take to grow and how tall it would grow eventually and care guidance. Many thanks for help. IMG_20250618_164217.jpg
     
  2. NigelJ

    NigelJ Total Gardener

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    It's a Monkey Puzzle tree, Araucaria araucana.
    See below for a recent thread on the topic, there are other threads on the forum as well.
    Monkey Puzzle Problems
    It is not a tree for a small garden or for planting close to a house or other buildings.
    Also they do better in damper cooler climates, so it depends where you are.
    They initially grow rapidly and ultimately can reach 20 m +.
     
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    • Richg

      Richg Apprentice Gardener

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      Thanks very much for this comprehensive reply. Really appreciate it!
       
    • micearguers

      micearguers Gardener

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      They drop razor sharp leaves, not so much when they are young, but when they are older. Have you seen one up close? They are quite fearsome.
       
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      • Richg

        Richg Apprentice Gardener

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        No not seen one up close enough to observe this. Thanks for heads up. Will have a closer look!
         
      • BB3

        BB3 Total Gardener

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        Something to admire in someone else's garden - or country estate
         
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        • Sheal

          Sheal Total Gardener

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          Here's a few pics for you Richg. Believe me the spines on both trunk and branches are lethal.

          017.JPG

          015.JPG

          016.JPG
           
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          • Richg

            Richg Apprentice Gardener

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            Thanks very much - I think they do look amazing!
             
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            • BB3

              BB3 Total Gardener

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            • Philippa

              Philippa Gardener

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              Magnificent trees in the right place but think long and hard before you plant one in your garden.
               
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              • Tinkerton

                Tinkerton Gardener

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                Never liked them, mostly because they look so 'alien' in Britain, and because they don't seem to provide any habitat, shelter or food for birds. They can look impressive in the vast gardens of country estates, but I'd personally think twice before growing one, unless you have an acre or two.
                 
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                • pete

                  pete Growing a bit of this and a bit of that....

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                  I like them but in the right setting, a bit like country estates with Cedar of Lebanon etc.

                  Its a bit Victorian and suggests those days of the plant hunters bringing back seeds.

                  monkey puzzle is a strange name as I dont think they have monkeys where it grows naturally:scratch:
                  but then who gives a monkey?:biggrin:
                   
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                  • Tinkerton

                    Tinkerton Gardener

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                    Think they're native to Chile? Endangered in their own country, or they were, not sure if they still are.
                     
                  • pete

                    pete Growing a bit of this and a bit of that....

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                    Some pointless info.
                    We used to use the timber of a closely related species for stair strings, it was known as Parana pine, and was very distinctive, it came in wide boards which made it ideal, sometimes called Chile pine.
                    i think we nearly wiped them out in the wild..
                     
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                    • shiney

                      shiney President, Grumpy Old Men's Club Staff Member

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                      There are quite a variety of monkey species in South America. One of the explanation of the common name is that the spikes on the bark make it a puzzle for monkeys to climb them. :noidea:
                       
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