About
Araucaria cunninghamii is a tall, frost-sensitive conifer that can grow over 50 meters in height. Its bark is rough and reddish-brown, shedding in circular strips. The juvenile foliage consists of awl-shaped leaves that can reach up to 2 centimeters in length and are spirally arranged, while the mature leaves transform into scale-like structures that curve inward. Male cones are cylindrical, measuring 2 to 3 centimeters, whereas the female cones are ovoid, measuring between 8 and 10 centimeters. These cones appear on mature specimens and break apart upon ripening to disperse their nut-like seeds.
About the genus
Araucaria comprises evergreen trees native to the Southern Hemisphere. These trees feature whorled branching and leaves that can be needle-like, triangular, or scale-like in appearance. They produce small male cones and larger female cones, typically found on different specimens.
Growing conditions
- Sunlight
- Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil type
- Loam, Sand
- Soil pH
- Acid, Alkaline
- Soil moisture
- Moist but well-drained
- Aspect
- North-facing, South-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H3
Plant details
- Plant type
- Conifers, Trees
- Habit
- Columnar upright
- Foliage
- Evergreen
- Height
- Higher than 12 metres
- Spread
- 4-8 metres
- Time to full height
- More than 50 years
- Suggested uses
- Architectural
- Native to
- New Guinea, E Australia
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Grow outdoors in moderately fertile, well-drained soil in a site sheltered from frost and cold, drying winds
- Pruning
- Pruning group 1
- Propagation
- Propagate by seed or by semi-ripe cuttings
- Pest resistance
- Generally pest-free
- Disease resistance
- May be susceptible to honey fungus