In late fall, the western larch’s needles turn yellow and then drop to the ground in November. The turning pine trees make for colorful hillsides, mainly in western Montana. A great place to see ...

The Western larch — which may look like a normal evergreen tree in the spring and summer — is a deciduous conifer tree, producing cones while also dropping its golden needles in the fall.

Stephen F. Arno of Missoula has self-published through Amazon a book on the ecology and history of the Northwestern larch titled “Golden Trees of the Mountain West.” According to the book’s ...