What is a Monkey Puzzle Tree?
The monkey puzzle tree is an evergreen conifer native to the highlands of Chile and Argentina. It was originally imported to Europe in the 1800s, and became a popular addition to botanical gardens because of its unusual and distinctive appearance. Because it is an evergreen, the monkey puzzle tree is often used as an ornamental tree, and is also used as a timber resource, in addition to providing edible nuts. Since the trees are more valuable alive, the monkey puzzle tree is rarely cut for timber, but when it is harvested, it provides long, straight, close grained timber. Harvesting of the nuts has put survival of the trees at risk in some parts of South America.
