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Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco)

Also known as Douglas-fir.

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Summary

Douglas fir is an evergreen conifer native to the Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountains, and one of the largest trees in North America.

Range - Expand

LegendColor
Native
Introduced
Native or Not Present
Introduced or Not Present

This tentative map is based on our own research. It may have limited data on Canada and/or Mexico, and there is some subjectivity in our assignment of plants as introduced vs. expanded. Read more in this blog post.

There is some uncertainty about how to classify this species and its relatives. Typically two varieties are described, Coast Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii) and Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca). The ranges of these two varieties overlap, and there are intermediate forms along a cline. Populations of this species in Mexico are sometimes considered part of the Rocky Mountain variety, but may be a separate variety.

In North America, one other Pseudotsuga species occurs, the much less widespread bigcone Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga macrocarpa), native and limited to the mountains of Southern California.

Globally, four other species of this genus are found in East Asia, and there have been at least five other species formerly, but no longer classified in this genus.

This genus is considered part of the Laricoideae subfamily, also including larches (Larix sp.), with three native and two introduced species in North America, and Cathaya sp, which do not not occur in North America.

Douglas Fir | The Wood Database (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas-fir) | USDA PLANTS Database (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii | Go Botany (About This Site)

Common Douglas-Fir | iNaturalist (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas Fir) | Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder (About This Site)

Douglas-Fir | Virginia Tech Dendrology Factsheets (About This Site)

Douglas-Fir | Silvics of North America (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii | Biota of North America Project (BONAP) (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii | NatureServe Explorer (About This Site)

Pseudotsuga menziesii | Flora of North America (About This Site)