Araucaria araucana
Monkey Puzzle Tree
Description
This large, evergreen tree will eventually grow about 70'-90' tall and has pointed, dark green leaves. It is native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina. The origin of the popular English language name "monkey puzzle" derives from its early cultivation in Britain in about 1850, when the species was still very rare in gardens and not widely known. Sir William Molesworth, the proud owner of a young specimen at Pencarrow garden near Bodmin in Cornwall, was showing it to a group of friends, one of them – the noted barrister and Benthamist Charles Austin – remarked, "It would puzzle a monkey to climb that". As the species had no existing popular name, first "monkey puzzler", then "monkey puzzle" stuck.
Sun
Full
Water
Medium
Growth Rate
Slow
Soil Type
Sandy, Clay, Loam, Rocky, Unparticular
Soil Condition
Average, Well-drained
Soil pH
Neutral
Adverse Factors
n/a
Replace turf with groundcovers, trees, and shrubs. If you have areas where no one uses the grass, patches that do not grow well, or a turf area too small to water without runoff, consider replacing the turf with water-efficient landscaping.