| Common Name |
Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir |
| Latin Name |
Pseudotsuga menziesii |
| Family |
Pinaceae |
| Sunset zones / USDA zones |
1-10,14-17 / 4-9b |
| Type / Form |
Tree / Large |
| Native Habitat |
5,000 to tree-line in western U. S. except California |
| Soil |
Dry to moist, decomposed granite, sand, clay loam,
limestone, low to some organic content, well drained |
| Water |
Once to twice per month depending on soil in hot weather |
| Exposure |
Full sun |
| Height X Width |
40 feet X 20 feet , 200 feet tall unusual and usually
near Pacific coast |
| Protective Mechanism |
None |
| Leaves |
Evergreen, single needles that lack
woody pegs or suction cups, yellow-green to blue-green, 3/4 to 1 1/4
inches long, tips blunt or slightly rounded, very fragrant. |
| Flowers |
Monoecious;
males oblong, red to yellow, near branch tips; females reddish, with
long bracts, occurring near branch tips. Cones very distinctive, 3 to 4
inches long with rounded scales. Three-lobed bracts extend beyond the
cone scales and resemble mouse posteriors. Maturing in late summer.
|
| Bark / Roots |
Smooth and gray on young stems, becoming thickened,
red-brown with ridges and deep furrows.
Twigs slender
and red-brown, with long, sharp, pointed, red-brown buds. |
| Maintenamce |
Low |
| Propagation |
Seed - best sown in the autumn to winter in a cold frame so that it is
stratified. The seed can also be stored dry and sown in late winter.
When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into
individual pots and grow them on in light shade in the cold frame for at
least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions
in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Seedlings tolerate light shade for their first few years of growth.
Cones often fall from the tree with their seed still inside. If you have
plenty of seed then it can be sown in an outdoor seedbed in early
spring. Grow the plants on for at least two years in the seedbed before
planting them out in late autumn or early spring. |
| Pests and diseases |
Shoestring root rot (Armillaria
mellea) and laminated root rot (Phillinus weirii) can cause significant
damage in plantations. Infected trees are killed or weakened and
blown over by wind. Red ring rot (Phillinus pini), a heart rot,
causes more damage than any other decay. The Douglas-fir beetle is
the most damaging insect and often attacks fire-killed or fire-weakened
trees [31]. |
| Landscape uses |
|
| Garden Suitability |
Thornless, Songbird, Fragrant, Mountain |
| Ornamental Value |
Long dark green needles, fragrant |
| Nature Value |
Host to insects and birds |
| Native American Uses |
Construction, basketry, medicinal, |
| Links |
|
| Images and data |
http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Pseudotsuga+menziesii |
| Images and data |
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=PSME |
| Images and data |
http://www.desert-tropicals.com/Plants/Pinaceae/Pseudotsuga_menziesii.html |
| Images and data |
http://www.nearctica.com/trees/conifer/tsuga/Pmenz.htm |
| Images and data |
http://www.nazflora.org/Pseudotsuga%20menziesii%20v%20glauca.htm |
| Images and data |
http://www.hort.uconn.edu/plants/p/psemen/psemen1.html |
| Images and data |
http://www.cnr.vt.edu/DENDRO/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=105 |
| Images and data |
http://www.swcoloradowildflowers.com/Tree%20Enlarged%20Photo%20Pages/pseudotsuga%20menziesii.htm |
| Images and data |
http://www.conifers.org/pi/ps/menziesii.htm |
| Data |
http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/psemenm/all.html |
| Distribution map |
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=PSMEG |
| Nursery, images and data |
http://www.laspilitas.com/plants/547.htm |
| Nursery |
Oak Hills Nursery, 13874 Ranchero Road, Oak Hills,
92345, 760-947-6261 |
| |
Moderate pollinator |
