Araucaria angustifolia

If like me you are into the wonderful world of Araucariaceae this is a must have plant. Very striking tree which is a quick grower and appears hardier than its illustrious cousin Araucaria araucana.

Aruacaria angustifolia is an evergreen tree growing up to 40 m and 1 m in diameter. The leaves are very thick, tough and scale like, triangular, 3–6 cm long, 5–10 mm broad at the base, and with razor-sharp edges and tip.
They persist 10 to 15 years, so cover most of the tree except for the trunk and older branches. It is closely related to Araucaria araucana (monkey Puzzle) from further southwest in South America, differing most noticeably in the narrower leaves.

It is normally dioecious, with the male and female cones growing on separate trees. Very new to general cultivation and comes highly recommended.

Hardiness: Hardy to well below -6 Celsius for short periods. In the winter of 2010 it came through temperatures of -10 without any problems.