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Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca (Blue Douglas Fir)

Michael's Opinion

A beautiful specimen of evergreen that has a very soft feel to the needles, it is a very valuable source of food for animals on the west coast such as the blue grouse that will eat the needles.

Botanical Information

Family	Pinaceae
Genus	Pseudotsuga
Species	menziesii
Variety	glauca
Category	Woody
Type	Tree (evergreen)
Origin	Native to North America and found in the Rocky Mountains and on the Pacific coast from B.C to Mexico. Introduced into cultivation in 1827. Introduced by Victorian plant collector David Douglas who was employed by the Horticultural Society of London (later to become the Royal Horticultural Society) in the 1920’s. Douglas was killed under suspicious circumstances on his return from the Pacific North-West via Hawaii in 1834 at the age of 35.
Pronunciation

Details

USDA Hardiness Zone	5A through
USDA Hardiness Ref.
Canadian Hardiness Zone	4-6
Canada Hardiness Ref.
RHS Hardiness Ref.
Height	13-16.25 m
Spread	4-14 m
Growth	Medium
Flowering Period	May

Description and Growing Information

General Description	Twigs are brown to grey, smooth, finely pubescent with scattered short hairs.
ID Characteristic	Alternate and simple leaf with a blue to blue green colour and a filiform needle-like shape.
Shape	Symmetrically pyramidal with a moderate crown density.
Landscape	Very ornamental under cultivation, an excellent specimen suited to grouping or mass planting. It also makes an excellent short needled Christmas tree.
Propagation	Seeds will germinate without pretreatment although success may very with the seed source.
Cultivation	Start seeds outdoors in containers in spring. Pseudotsuga menziesii thrives in full sun and is intolerant of shade. It likes a moist but well-drained soil with a pH between 3.7 and 6.5. Douglas Fir is not tolerant of dry soil. It has a moderate to fast growth rate. It tolerates pruning and shearing, and should be protected from exposure to strong winds for the best appearance.
Pests	Aphids infestations on small trees may be dislodged with a strong stream of water from the garden hose. Scale and bark beetles may infest Douglas-Fir, especially those under stress. Root rot can be a serious problem on clay and other wet soils. Needl
Notable Specimens	Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens.
Habitat	Mountains ranging from 600m altitude up to 300m
Bark/Stem Description	Bark on young trees is thin, smooth grey and covered with resin blisters while on mature trees it is moderately thicker, furrowed and corky.
Flower/Leaf Bud Description	Distinctive narrow conically shaped buds, 3-6 cm long.
Leaf Description	Short needles that are spirally arranged slightly twisted at base covered in a light bloom.
Flower Description	Pollen cones are typically restricted to or more abundant on lower branches. Pollen cones develop over 1 year with the pollen being wind-dispersed pollen is released for several weeks in the spring.
Fruit Description	Cones are pendulous, oval-ovoid, 9.5cm - 10.5cm long by 4.8cm to 6.5cm broad, with 3 pronged bracts between the scales. Cones are light brown in colour.
Colour Description	Foliage typically a bluish-green.
Texture Description	A medium textured tree.

Photographs

A very old specimen at Wakehurst Garden, Sussex, England.

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