We who live in western Washington State are blessed. Great stands of year-round green forest characterize the undeveloped countryside. Those who live on Whidbey Island know our island as an almost continuous forest from beach to beach. We are virtually surrounded by coniferous forests. So much so that we tend to take our many magnificent 'evergreens' for granted. They are just there!

All our common evergreens, the firs, cedars, hemlocks, spruces and pines belong to a family of 'naked seed' reproducers (called in botany, Gymnosperms); seeds protected and developed within 'cones'.

In this short paper, we will explore these wonders of nature in their geographic and ecological context. Because our regional conifers are widely distributed throughout western Washington, we'll also explore the major habitat characteristics of the dozen trees that dominate Washington's coniferous forests. There is sufficient graphic material to supplement the descriptions and aid the reader in identifying each species as you travel about Washington. For consistency we have held to the species descriptions common to the Audubon Society[1].

Almost all our regional conifers are members of the 'Pine' family (Pinaceae), a huge grouping of most of the world's softwoods. Local exceptions are the cedars. These are members of the Cyprus family (Cupressaceae). The universal system in science for describing and naming life forms is called the Linnaean system[2]. Because all life forms are bound together in the 'web of life', we'll also review the wildlife and habitat associated with our major tree species.

Habitats are units of natural landscape, typically defined by their plant communities. They tend to share common conditions of geology and soils, latitude, landforms, elevation range (height above sea level), weather, exposure, and so forth, in addition to common plant communities. Plants in turn provide food for animals, so common trees, suggest common understory of flowers, bushes and grasses, that in turn suggest common wildlife forms. Where particularly magnificent coniferous species types are found, we have indicated where and directions to visit exceptional examples. Look at public records search across the United States

Biotic Zones. Washington State has several biotic zones ranging from the wet, coastal forests of the Olympics to the brushgrass prairies and sagebrush broken lands of Eastern Washington. Four of the Zones are relevant to our major conifers. The Coastal Forest Zone includes that part of Washington lying west of the crest of the Olympic Mts. down to the Pacific Ocean. Here we find first and foremost the Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii).

Exceptional examples: off Highway 101, eight miles east of Queets, go left on the Queets River road about three miles. In a few cases trees as tall as 200 ft. and up to six ft. in diameter can be found. Easy to recognize, long and gently tapering with few or no branches on the lower trunk.

Western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla). Exceptional examples: the largest species type 160' in height can be found in the Olympic National Park, unfortunately in remote areas accessible only via trail. A very easy tree to recognize at a distance, the tip has a pronounced droop and the heavy limbs also droop. At higher elevations, a stunted variant, sometimes called "mountain hemlock" can be found up to 6,000 ft.

Western red cedar (Thuja plicata). Exceptional examples: about 18 miles south of Forks on Highway 101, after crossing the Hoh River, southbound. Washington has the largest red cedars on earth, some 150 ft. high and six ft. in diameter Easily recognized because of the severe tapering from root to top. Has 'feathery' reddish bark that comes off in long strips.

Grand fir (Abies grandis). These firs are found together with Sitka spruce (see below) in the lowland areas. All five of the above species are found from sea level to 5,000 ft.; except red cedar that grow up to about 3,500 ft. This Zone has incredible rainfall, in some areas more than 100 inches per year! Typical associations of animals include the Roosevelt elk (Cervus elaphus), mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), raccoon (Procyon lotor), red fox (Vulpes vulpes), great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), spotted owl (Strix occidentalis), and various rodents and wrens.
Glenfiddich 12

The Lowland Forest Zone includes the areas lying east of the foothills of the Olympics to the western foothills of the Cascades. This is the largest forested area in Washington. Douglas fir, red cedar, hemlock, Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and Yellow cedar at higher elevations are the major coniferous trees. Red cedars are most often found in the wetter, lower elevations, that in this zone vary from sea level to about 2,500 ft. Rainfall varies from about 15 inches to more than 60 inches.

Yellow cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis). Exceptional examples of Yellow cedar may be found near Lake Quinault, off Highway 101. Take the Quinault River road, a few miles northeast of the Lake Quinault Lodge to see some truly exceptional trees. A rather shaggy, often twisted tree with shortish limbs that sweep downward in common with other cedars. The leaves are scaly and very prickly.

This species is found in northwestern Washington from sea level to almost 7,000 ft. They grow to a height seldom exceeding 80 ft. Stumps, over 5 ft. in diameter, however, may indicate ages close to, or over 1,000 years old! Typical wildlife associations include: bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), mule deer, red foxes, coyotes (Canis latrans), raccoon, various squirrels, red-backed voles and spotted owls.

The Mountain Forest Zone includes a portion of the Olympic Mts., but is otherwise defined as the foothills of the Cascades from 2,000 ft. to about 5,500 ft. on both sides of the range. The western face sees red cedar in wet, protected areas. Otherwise, Douglas fir populations decline while Western hemlock populations increase, and we are introduced to the Noble fir (Abies procera), that is found on both sides of the Cascades between 2,500 ft. and 5,000 ft.

Exceptional examples: 4-5 miles east of Morton in Pierce County along Highway 508 you will find some magnificent specimens. They are recognized by their tall slender trunks and enormous height ' up to 200 ft. A long-lived species; Noble firs 1,000 years old are known. Precipitation in this Zone includes both moderate rainfall and up to 15 ft. of winter snow along the western slopes.

East of the Cascades, Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) is the dominant inland species.

Exceptional examples are easily viewed when just cresting the Cascades toward the east along any of our many passes. A distinctive straight trunk with a random-looking mass of twisted branches. The only pine with very long needles, three to a sheath. Specifically, ponderosa are found from about 1,500 ft. to 3,500 ft. (Snoqualmie Pass at 3,000 ft. is approaching the higher elevation range of these conifers).

Another association is the lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta latifolia), found in small bands in the lowlands and coastal areas, but that form significant populations east of the Cascade crest, sharing similar territory and elevations with Ponderosa. Easily recognized because of their very thin trunk and straggly looking branches often only 18 inches in diameter but a 100 ft. high!

Lodgepole, are the first species to recover in burned forestlands because their cones withstand fire well. They tolerate boggy areas and are often found interspersed with Ponderosa. Wildlife here includes snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus), the lynxes (Lynx lynx and Lynx rufus), mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), various marmots (Marmota spp.), pikas (Ochotona princeps), eagles, ravens and Steller jays.

The Intermountain Forest Zone includes all of northern Washington State, east of the crest of the Cascades and including the Okanogan Highlands. In this Zone average rainfalls drop significantly; temperatures rise in summer and plummet in winter, and the character of the landforms are dry and rocky. Here the dominant conifer species on the western slopes, Western hemlock, gives way on the eastern slopes to Ponderosa pine. Ponderosa does best in dry heat. They can grow to 170 ft. Another species sharing these climatic and edaphic conditions is the Western larch (Larix occidentalis).

Exceptional examples: huge specimen trees, over 160', can be visited on the south side of the Columbia River, a few miles east of Wenatchee on Highway 285 near Malaga. An evenly tapering trunk that looks very skinny ("the flagpole tree") when viewed from a distance. Easily recognized because the lower third droop downward, the middle third curve upwards, and the top third are in sparse branches that grow horizontally. Larch turn a brilliant yellow-gold in autumn.

Western white pine (Pinus monticola), and lodgepole pine are the other two dominant species together making up the conifer forests of Eastern Washington. Wildlife associations include chipmunks, mule deer, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), American badger (Taxidea taxus), hawks, owls and other raptors.

How to Tell the Age of a Living Tree. Foresters and forest ecologists and others who study forest health have an on-going need to know the age and other characteristics of a forest stand. Experts are informed of the age and overall health of a stand by using aerial photographs and stereoscopy. For more accurate measurements, they use an 'increment borer'. This is a device that augers small holes into the center of a tree and then extracts a 'core' showing the trees growth rings. Each ring represents a year of the tree's life and the width and character of each growth ring suggests temperature and moisture for that growth year.

Another, informal but accurate, method for aging trees counts the 'whorls' (the individual levels of branching). In the illustration (highly idealized), you see 10 vertical whorls. By adding three years to this count (because average conifers are two to three years of age before they generate whorls), you estimate ages to, plus or minus, a year or two.

Notes: The conifer illustrations used here are those of C. P. Lyons, a prominent Canadian forester.

[1] The National Audubon Society was founded in 1905, in the memory of John James Audubon, the greatest bird artist in history. The Society was formed to promote, conserve and restore natural ecosystems and habitat, with an especial focus on bird life. They maintain a terrific Web site: www.audubon.org/. Audubon, the brilliant untrained naturalist and artist was born in Aux Cayes, Haiti, in 1785. He came to the United States at eighteen, moving to Philadelphia, then the intellectual capitol of North America, in 1803. Here Audubon came under the influence of many natural scientists and artists. He later traveled widely throughout North America and left us an incredible legacy of scientific art. seo Lichfield

[2] The 'systematic' method for the scientific classification of all life forms (called taxonomy) derives from the work of Carolus Linnaeus, the 'Latinized' name for the brilliant Swedish botanist, who lived from 1707 to 1778. Linnaeus, considered the father of taxonomy (the universal scientific system for naming and identifying species), gave us the 'binomial nomenclature' system, wherein, for instance, a timber wolf is technically known as Canus lupus lupus. The first of the two names is the Genus of plant or animal and the second name is the species (this is "binomial nomenclature"). Where relevant, a 'third' name refers to the sub-species, or race, of the plant or animal.

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