I recently came across a Monkey Puzzle Tree situated in the front of a house in the Atlantic City, New Jersey area. Would this tree be viable in Southern NJ (closer to Philadelphia? Where would one purchase said tree? moderator's note: added a more descriptive title to topic
It likes temperate, humid summers but will survive down to -4°F. It has been grown along the eastern U.S. Coast but not too far south and also along the Northwestern U.S. Coast. Some say it will grow in zone 10 but some sites say not that far south. It is a native of Chile (their National Tree) and the Andes in South America. It's scientific name is Araucaria araucana so you may have to do some searching by that name to find a nursery with one available.
I have a monkey puzzle tree in my front yard, but then I'm near Vancouver, BC and we don't normally get harsh winters. We usually get a couple of weeks of sub-freezing temperatures and a few days of snow. Othewise lots of rain. There are a fair amount of monkey puzzle trees around here. I also see a lot when I'm visiting family back in Scotland and England. We bought ours at a nursery. There were about 6 for sale and this one bit me so I bought it. They're a slow growing tree, about 6" or so a year. Here's photos of mine that I bought over 2 years ago and a tree that's near my father's house. Monkey puzzle tree in front yard ( photo / image / picture from whistler's Garden ) Nice looking monkey puzzle tree ( photo / image / picture from whistler's Garden )
puzzle tree Thanks for replies. I was hoping someone in this area may know of any local nurseries that carry this tree.
