Alpine Fir (Abies Lasiocarpa) 15 seeds (#425)

Very tall and narrow in form, subalpine fir looks like a green church spire. A cone-bearing evergreen tree with green needles that have a bluish cast, it is native from the Yukon of Canada southward in the Rocky Mountains to northern Arizona and New Mexico in the United States. Its bark is gray to nearly white, smooth but mildly bumpy.
The short but flattened needles whorl around the tree's twigs. They are dark green but covered in a bluish-white film (called a bloom). In early summer, male cones appear among the needles and shed their pollen. Carried by the wind, the pollen reaches the female cones in the upper tree branches and then causes the cones to become a lovely purple before ripening to brown.
The shoot tips are used as a tea substitute. The cones can be ground into a fine powder, then mixed with fat and used as a confection. It is said to be a delicacy and an aid to the digestion. The resin from the trunk is used as a chewing gum. It is said to treat bad breath. Inner bark. No more information is given, but inner bark is often dried, ground into a powder and then used with cereal flours when making bread etc.
Grow Alpine Fir in full to partial sun in a fertile but moist soil that has good drainage. Avoid highly alkaline soil. Its tall, spire-like habit lends it best to a grove planting, perhaps in clusters of three or five plants that will slowly tower over surrounding trees to create an impressive sight. It grows a bit faster and wider in regions that rarely lack rainfall.
Information source: www.Learn2Grow.com.

Genus - Abies
Species - Lasiocarpa
Common name - Alpine Fir
Pre-Treatment - Required
Hardiness zones - 5 - 7
Height - 70'-90' / 20(40) m
Spread - 10'-15' / 3 - 5 m
Plant type - Tree
Vegetation type - Evergreen
Exposure - Full Sun, Partial Sun
Growth rate - Medium
Soil PH - Acidic, Neutral
Soil type - Clay, Loam, fertile
Water requirements - Average, high
Landscape uses - Feature Plant
Leaf / Flower color - Dark Green / --

GERMINATION INSTRUCTIONS
A short period of cold and moist stratification (in the fridge) needed.
1. Soak the seeds in clean water for 24 hours. Fully drain away all of the water and place the seeds in a zip-lock freezer bag. Place the seeds in the fridge at +2-+4C. Make sure the seeds during this period not dry out or are waterlogged otherwise the pre-treatment will be ineffective.
2. After 6-8 weeks of the pretreatment seeds are ready to be sown.
3. Sow in a good quality potting compost. It should be sterile and clean, never used before. Firm the compost gently, water and sow the seeds 6-8 mm deep. Keep moist and at room temperature.
4. Germination will begin in a few weeks.