Description

Leaves: Needles borne singly; about 1" long; flat; blunt; yellow-green to blue-green; evergreen; remain on tree 5-8 years.

Twigs/buds: Twigs slender; flexible; covered with fine hairs; glabrous when leaves are detached.  Buds cigar-shaped; sharp-pointed; about 1/2" long; brown.

Flowers/fruit: Monoecious.  Fruit a thin-scaled cone; about 3" long; hangs down; each scale has a 3-pointed woody bract attached to it.

Bark: Smooth; gray-brown; with resin blisters on young trees; rough and thick on older trees.

Wood: Very important; sapwood white to yellow; heartwood yellow to red; growth rings very distinct; used for high-quality lumber and plywood.

General: Native to the Pacific coastal states and Rocky Mountain states, including Utah.  Not a true fir.  Very valuable western timber tree.  Intermediate shade tolerance.

Landscape Use: Does well in Utah but seldom seen away from native mountain sites.  Does well in Utah's valleys with adequate moisture.  I have seen a couple of fairly large ones struggling along at Ft. Douglas on the UofU campus.  Zones 4-6.

Cultivars: 'Aurea', 'Blue', 'Carnefix Weeping', 'Compact', 'Cross Selection', 'De Bunn', 'Emerald Twist', 'Fastigiata', 'Fletcheri', 'Graceful Grace', 'Hale', 'Hillside Gold', 'Hillside Pride', 'Jackson's Witch's Broom', 'Little Jon', 'Loggerhead', 'Pendula', 'Seattle Mountain', 'Shorty's Blue', 'Skyline', 'var. glauca', 'Waggin' Tails'.

Characteristics