The leaves of conifers vary greatly in appearance depending on the species and variety: they can be wide or flat, pointed or round, long or short, hard or soft… There are also different colors, such as green, blue and yellow tones. With such a variety, a lot of variety can be created in the garden.
The European larch has very soft needles
The most beautiful species of conifers with soft needles
Coniferous trees do not necessarily have sharp, prickly needles. Instead, there are many beautiful species with soft needles for the garden.
European larch (Larix decidua)
The European larch, which is also the only deciduous conifer, has probably the softest needles. In autumn, the up to three centimeters long, flattened and very flexible needles turn golden yellow and are dropped. However, the forest tree, which has become rare, only finds space in very large gardens or parks - it can grow up to 40 meters high.
Common juniper (Juniperus communis)
Some cultivars of common juniper have fan-like branches with flattened, needle-shaped leaves. The 'Green Carpet' and 'Repanda' varieties in particular offer a rather atypical appearance with long, soft needles. Soft needles can also be found in other juniper species such as creeping juniper (Juniperus horizontalis) and Pfitzer's juniper (Juniperus x pfitzeriana). Other species and varieties can have very sharp and hard needles.
Occidental tree of life (Thuja occidentalis)
The tree of life, also simply called "Thuja", has soft, scaly leaves. They are pressed close to the twigs, dull green on top and paler on the underside. In winter they often have an olive to bronze color. There are also numerous varieties with yellow needles, such as 'Sunkist', 'Golden Globe' or 'Europe Gold'. Also typical is the strong aromatic scent that escapes when the needles are rubbed between two fingers.
Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
The Douglas fir, often referred to as Douglas fir in this country, has very soft, blunt needles. These stand alone and are up to four centimeters long. If you take a few needles between two fingers and rub them, they give off a fresh scent reminiscent of lemons. The Douglas fir originally comes from North America and can grow up to 60 meters high in good conditions. Accordingly, this tree is only suitable for large gardens or parks.
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A rarity is the golden larch (Pseudolarix amabilis), which is also deciduous and whose needles turn wonderfully golden yellow in autumn. Despite this similarity, the species is not related to the native larch.