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Scientific Name:
Pseudotsuga menziesii
Pronunciation:
soo-doe-TSOO-guh MEN-zeez-ee-eye
Common Name:
Douglas fir
Family Name:
Pinaceae
Plant Type:
Conifer
Key ID Features:
Bark very thick, deeply fissured; leaves soft, needle-like but much shorter and flatter than pine trees,15-30(-40)cm long x 1.2-1.5mm wide; pollen cones 15-20mm long, yellow-red; seed cones pendulous on 5-10mm long stalks, 4-10cm long × 3-3.5cm wide when opened, bracts tucked under cone scales are 3-pointed (look like tail and back legs of a mouse hiding under scale); seeds 6-8 x 4-5mm, light brown, with a 9-14mm long, yellow-brown wing; seedlings with 5-9 cotyledons, 1.2-2cm long with entire margins. Conifers.org

Habit:
Horizontal, Upright
Form:
Pyramidal - widely
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
> 30m
Mature Spread:
10 - 15m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
B.C. east of Cascades, B.C. west of Cascades, U.S. - northwest, U.S. - southwest
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun
Soil/Growing Medium:
Acidic, Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Forestry, Native planting, Specimen plant, Wind break, Woodland margin
Additional Info:

Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Needle-like
Arrangement:
Alternate, Spiraled
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Fall:
Green
Shapes:
Acicular
Apices:
Acute, Rounded
Bases:
Cuneate
Margins:
Entire
Additional Info:
2-3cm long, sharp point; soft, flexible, appear in 2 rows, spirally arranged, flat, groove above.

Inflorescence Type:
n/a (male cone)
Flower Morphology:
Monoecious plant
Colour (petals):
Male cone, Yellow, Brown
Flower Time at Peak:
Apr, May

Fruit Type:
Cone (winged seeds)
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Sep, Oct

Bark Morphology:
Deeply fissured, Corky, Single stem trunk
Bark or Stem Colour:
Grey, Brown
Leaf Scar Shape:
Round
Organ Modifications:
Ectomycorrhizae
Propagation:
Seed
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
Aphids or adelgids, Blight or needle cast, Canker or sap rot, Caterpillar or cutworm, Dieback, Diptera - true flies, Nematodes, Rust, Scale insects (Drought tolerant)

Course(s):
  • AARB 1012
  • HORT 1155
  • Level 2 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
  • (FSC)  Far South Campus : seedlings - planted in 2018
  • (JPL)  Juglans PLanting
  • (QRR)  Quercus Robur Row planting : seedlings - planted in 2018
  • (TFL)  Turf Field Lab
  • (TFLW)  Turf Field Lab West
  • (WDH)  Wark-Dumais House : 213, 215
  • (WLG)  WoodLand Garden
Location Map