eve wrote:
: The Monkey Puzzle Tree does well in a damp atmosphere and in moist, but
: not soaked, loamy soil. If the ground is full of grit, the lower
: branches will die and the trees soon lose their vigor. A. excelsa
: thrives best in a sunroom or cool greenhouse and should have a compost
: of two-thirds loam and one-third leaf mold, with a bit of sand added.
: These plants should be repotted yearly until they are placed in 7 or
: 8-inch pots. Once they are in these size pots, they will not need to be
: repotted, though it is beneficial to remove some of the old surface
: soil in the spring and replace with fresh compost. A sprinkling of
: fertilizer every month from March to September will keep the plants
: vigorous.

Well there is a forest just inland from Lindisfarne in Northumberland,
that has a thriving section of self seeding Monkey Puzzles that is
obviously expanding at the expense of the regular conifers and local
trees, so it can't be that tender or difficult. Some fot he trees are
pretty large.