• Monday-What'sUP November 10 - 04:57 pm

Just when you think all the leaves have fallen and the color is gone to drab, you come across the conifer tree that turns a bright orange in the fall and then drops it's needles. The Tamarack tree would be a perfect Christmas tree, if it weren't for that trait. Shawn and Brian Malone captured the color of the Tamaracks, along with a vivid red bush, that Shawn thinks might just be blueberry bushes. No matter what the species of bush, they add a wonderful tint to the wetlands UP North. The second photo today reflects the colors, blurring them and spreading the hues of the Tamarack tree through the waters. When researching information for my notes, I found that this deciduous coniferous tree is very tolerant of the cold and can withstand winter temperatures quite well. Sounds to me like the perfect Yooper tree!

Good Morning from Wells

Good morning everybody!! I keep forgetting that just because it's only 7:30 here, it's an hour later there.

Have a great day!

Deb: ----> Oops!! :-P

Bad football weekend all around; Lakes lost, Huskies lost, Wolverines lost, Packers lost, Dallas won........ bad, bad weekend I tell ya!!

Hi you all. Hey Capt Paul, I'm sorry that the Huskies and Lakes lost. Wolverines, meh, Packers, meh. But, it wasn't all bad. Midland High won against Lapeer West, but at a cost, as Lapeer West roughed up a couple of our star runners, at least one of which resulted in a personal foul against Lapeer West. We hope our two players are well enough to play this week, but I don't know with possible broken ribs. And Dallas's winning is not all bad. :-P

Beautiful pictures!

I have always loved tamaracks. I like the way they look in the fall
before they drop their needles, but I especially love their fuzzy feel
in Spring.

On a recent trip to Pa. we saw a lot of these conifer trees in shades of yellow and orange; according to people there, they are called "Larch" trees and can be found all over the world, but the ones in the northern U.S. are called tamarack...I took a lot of pictures of them as I had never seen conifers that changed color and looked so beautiful!!

Thanks for posting a picture of the Tamarack! Now I have a name
for the tree that I can see right outside my window in my
neighborhood down here in Northwest Illinois.

It turns a beautifully vibrant rust/red color in the Fall and since its
a conifer it keeps its color after the other tree's leaves have long
since dropped theirs.

WOW pretty pics today!!

I'm sure I'm not the only upland troll that's been fooled by tamaracks during their first fall & winter in the UP. I remember coming back from Thanksgiving break my first term at Tech, and trying to figure out what had killed all the poor conifers along the Seney stretch. A couple years later, I changed majors to forestry, and learned the secret... they're tamaracks along there, and they are deciduous conifers! Who knew?

Tamarack is the more common name used for larch in the Midwest - generally the same tree though.

Annie - I'm wondering if your tree is a bald cypress instead? Tamarack generally turn a smoky gold color, not red, where the cypress will turn a coppery red color.

I love the delicate needles of tamarack trees. Canadian hemlock is also very beautiful and lacy.
They both seem to like areas that are quite damp.
The hemlocks like the areas near waterfalls like the ones near Pictured Rocks. They give such a wonderful fragrance to the air. And there are so many tamaracks along the west side of the road going up to Oliver Bay. Lots of blueberries, too.
The UP is God's country!

How neat! Tamaracks are hardwood, they lose their 'leaves'. :o) I have many pix of them, too. Gold in the fall, the prettiest green in the spring.