Question: I’ve noticed that many trees will sprout from the stump when you cut them down, but conifers never seem to do so. Are they all incapable of sprouting from the base?
A. Pospisil
Answer: You almost had me stumped with this question. I nearly replied yes, based on my experience: I’ve never seen a conifer resprout from a stump. But then I recalled hearing that, after Hiroshima, ginkgos (Ginkgo biloba) that had been nearly blasted out of existence did resprout. Now, officially ginkgos are not conifers, but they are gymnosperms, very close relatives. If ginkgos can resprout from the trunk, maybe some conifers can too.
It turns out that most conifers are indeed incapable of sprouting from the base: they have no dormant buds on the older parts of their trunk and certainly not at their base. This includes most conifers commonly grown in colder climates like mine: spruces, pines, firs and larches. However, there are some conifers that do bear dormant buds on old wood and some of these can resprout even if cut back to the ground.
Conifers That Can Resprout
Here is a partial list of conifers that are capable of resprouting from a stump:
Araucaria (Araucaria, some species)
Celery pine (Phyllocladus spp.)
Coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)
Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica)
Juniper (Juniperus spp.)
Kauri (Agathis spp.)
Patagonian cypress (Fitroyza cupressoides)
Pine (Pinus, some species, mostly of subtropical origin)
Plum yew (Cephalotaxus spp.)
Podocarpus (Podocarpus, some species)
Yew (Taxus spp.)