Araucaria araucana

Sunset

Araucaria araucana

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Zones 4-9, 14-28, H1, H2

Full

Moderate

Monkey Puzzle Tree
Araucariaceae
Evergreen, Trees

ARAUCARIA

These strange looking conifers provide a distinctive silhouette with their evenly spread tiers of stiff branches. Most have stiff, closely overlapping, dark to bright-green leaves. All do well in a wide range of soils with adequate drainage.

Make impressive skyline trees and are seen in that role in many parks and old estates, especially in California, but they become so towering that they really do need the space they have in a park or large, open property. Not trees to sit under: with age they bear large, spiny, 10 to 15-lb. cones that fall with a crash. They thrive in containers for several years, even in desert areas.

Araucaria araucana

Native to Chile. Arboreal oddity whose heavy, spreading branches and ropelike branchlets are closely set with sharp-pointed leaves. Slow growing in youth. Hardiest of araucarias.