Trees and Shrubs Overview
Ponderosa Pine   Pinyon Pine   Utah Juniper   Gambel Oak   Douglas-fir
Cliffrose   Apache Plume   Mormon Tea   Utah Serviceberry   Fernbush   Wax Currant   Big Sagebrush
Fremont Barberry   Rabbit Brush   Banana Yucca   Utah Agave   Mountain Mahogany   Blueberry Elder
Rock Mat   Brickellbush   Buffalo Berry

DOUGLAS-FIR

Pine Family

Pseudotsuga menziesii


Douglas Fir

True firs belong to the genus Abies, but Douglas-fir has its own genus Pseudotsuga. Doug fir is a large straight-trunked tree, here about the size of Grand Canyon's ponderosa pines. The rough gray trunk is about 2 or 3 feet in diameter. Young trees and upper trunk can have smooth white bark like the white fir, a much less common tree in the area. With few exceptions, both Douglas-fir and white fir grow only below the South Rim, on shaded north-facing slopes and cliffs of the Kaibab and Toroweap Formations. Here a cooler micro-climate mimics the trees' preferred environment around 8,000 feet and above.
Douglas-fir vies with ponderosa pine in its importance as a lumber tree in the United States.

Douglas Fir Cones

Unlike the cones of true firs, those of Douglas-fir hang downward and have distinctive 3-pointed, papery bracts extending out from the scales. Some call these "mouse-tails" but they are more like the two hind feet and the tail. Immature cones are a beautiful deep purple color. Cones persist throughout the winter. The Douglas-fir needles are short like those of the Pinyon Pine.




Trees and Shrubs Overview
Ponderosa Pine   Pinyon Pine   Utah Juniper   Gambel Oak   Douglas-fir
Cliffrose   Apache Plume   Mormon Tea   Utah Serviceberry   Fernbush   Wax Currant   Big Sagebrush
Fremont Barberry   Rabbit Brush   Banana Yucca   Utah Agave   Mountain Mahogany   Blueberry Elder
Rock Mat   Brickellbush   Buffalo Berry
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