O.K. with an hour to spare in happy retirement, here is bobcat's guide to bark (mature trees only) after trawling through my photos. Conifers, and then a few random others. Sorry, I don't have a distinctive one for subalpine fir, which could well be Bosterson's second photo if it were above 5,000 feet or so.
Luckily, in the PNW we have scarcity of tree species due to our volcanic heritage, so the learning curve is rather shallow (except for willows). Takes a long while for new species to diverge and establish, and the scorching of the lands 17.5 - 15 million years ago, plus our proximity to the great North American ice sheet, other interruptions (Bretz Floods, Mt. Mazama, Great Cascadia 'Quakes, etc.) have retarded the development of speciation unlike, say, in more ancient landscapes like the southern Appalachians which have way more diversity than we do.
(Click on photo for enlargement)
Conifers:
Western hemlock:
Mountain hemlock:
Douglas-fir:
Grand fir:
Noble fir:
Silver fir:
Engelmann spruce:
Brewer's spruce:
Western larch:
Lodgepole pine:
Shore pine:
Western white pine:
Whitebark pine:
Pacific ponderosa:
Columbia ponderosa:
Western juniper:
Alaska yellow-cedar:
Western red-cedar:
Incense cedar:
Port Orford cedar:
MODIFIED conifer:
Pacific yew:
Angiosperms:
Red alder:
White alder:
Bitter cherry:
Pacific madrone:
Conifer IDs
- adamschneider
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Re: Tree bark
Yup, I still don't know bark. (Except madrone.)
Re: Tree bark
Wow, John, I was thinking of asking for a guided Bobcat forest tour, but it seemed unlikely. But since you're retired... (Congrats by the way!)
Thanks for posting all these. I will try to match them up next time I'm outside. Interesting to see the western vs mountain hemlock bark - mountain is definitely prevalent in IH based on my trip last weekend. I'm sort of embarrassed to have so little knowledge about these trees after all these years!
Thanks for posting all these. I will try to match them up next time I'm outside. Interesting to see the western vs mountain hemlock bark - mountain is definitely prevalent in IH based on my trip last weekend. I'm sort of embarrassed to have so little knowledge about these trees after all these years!
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- retired jerry
- Posts: 14424
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Re: Tree bark
yeah, congratulations, you can now avoid crowds by going during the week
Re: Conifer IDs
Ok, new crop, this time needles! These are from Table Mountain in the Gorge, so these are all from < 3500 ft. Lower down there seemed to be a lot of Doug Fir, which maybe is the result of that area having been heavily logged.
These were common on the summit, not really below. My ID is subalpine fir.
And this was obviously a hemlock (they're so distinctive), but this time it's western hemlock. Good to see the difference between this and the mountain hemlock that's so common in Indian Heaven - I didn't see any mountain hemlock today.
I'm thinking based on the hockey stick shape, this is noble fir.
This is also a fir, I'm guessing, but not quite sure which - distinctive flat needles would maybe indicate grand fir, but they're so long, so maybe it's a weird growing doug fir (which makes it a non-fir, but whatever).
This was a young tree along an old roadbed. Not sure, maybe doug fir due to bottlebrushing? It's interesting to see the needles growing out of the "trunk" in the 2nd pic. Tree is 5-6 ft tall.
Now this is perplexing - I found this in the forest above the HBR talus field. The needle tips were actually sharp (you can see the point), which makes me think it's a spruce, but if so, I can't figure out which.
And this was at the end of the NW ridge at the powerline road - a bunch of these cones had probably been knocked off, since fir cones fall apart? The trees were in an old roadbed, maybe 20 ft tall. I probably took this because it seemed like the same tree as the "spruce" above, but now I can't remember if the needle tips were sharp (they don't look as pointed in the pic), and the cone appeared to have grown upwards (judging by the needles), like a fir. Looks like a noble fir cone based on what I'm seeing online.
These were common on the summit, not really below. My ID is subalpine fir.
And this was obviously a hemlock (they're so distinctive), but this time it's western hemlock. Good to see the difference between this and the mountain hemlock that's so common in Indian Heaven - I didn't see any mountain hemlock today.
I'm thinking based on the hockey stick shape, this is noble fir.
This is also a fir, I'm guessing, but not quite sure which - distinctive flat needles would maybe indicate grand fir, but they're so long, so maybe it's a weird growing doug fir (which makes it a non-fir, but whatever).
This was a young tree along an old roadbed. Not sure, maybe doug fir due to bottlebrushing? It's interesting to see the needles growing out of the "trunk" in the 2nd pic. Tree is 5-6 ft tall.
Now this is perplexing - I found this in the forest above the HBR talus field. The needle tips were actually sharp (you can see the point), which makes me think it's a spruce, but if so, I can't figure out which.
And this was at the end of the NW ridge at the powerline road - a bunch of these cones had probably been knocked off, since fir cones fall apart? The trees were in an old roadbed, maybe 20 ft tall. I probably took this because it seemed like the same tree as the "spruce" above, but now I can't remember if the needle tips were sharp (they don't look as pointed in the pic), and the cone appeared to have grown upwards (judging by the needles), like a fir. Looks like a noble fir cone based on what I'm seeing online.
#pnw #bestlife #bitingflies #favoriteyellowcap #neverdispleased
-
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Re: Conifer IDs
Cool, thanks for the bark guide, John! How did you get so knowledgeable about trees, anyway? Just a hobby?
Re: Conifer IDs
Last two pictures are noble fir (tight needles, silvery blue hue). True fir (silver, noble, grand) cones sit upright and disintegrate on the branch. You only see them on the ground from windfall or if a squirrel has brought them down to dismember.
Your grand fir ID is correct. This twig got more sunlight, making the needles longer and the arrangement a little less tidy.
Your grand fir ID is correct. This twig got more sunlight, making the needles longer and the arrangement a little less tidy.
Yep. Over the years took up different ID projects (trees one of the first) to keep me occupied and engaged while on the hoof (especially when hiking alone). Trial and error,etc., until it became easy to flick my eyes over the forest and recognize what had always been in front of me.justpeachy wrote: ↑November 4th, 2019, 6:51 amHow did you get so knowledgeable about trees, anyway? Just a hobby?
- acorn woodpecker
- Posts: 240
- Joined: January 4th, 2013, 8:35 pm
Re: Conifer IDs
Wow, thanks for initiating this thread, Nat! I've wanted to get better at native tree IDs and this is a handy interactive resource. I'll have to download that app. John, your contributions to increasingly our knowledge of plants are much appreciated!
It seems the Mt Hood National Forest south of Govt Camp has the highest biodiversity of conifers in our immediate region. I'm aware of 13-14 species due to the mix of east and west side biomes overlapping.
It seems the Mt Hood National Forest south of Govt Camp has the highest biodiversity of conifers in our immediate region. I'm aware of 13-14 species due to the mix of east and west side biomes overlapping.
Re: Conifer IDs
Thanks John! (I always write these ID questions hoping you'll answer. ) That's exactly why I'm trying to teach myself trees - they've always been there, and for all these years I've been ignoring their subtleties.bobcat wrote: ↑November 4th, 2019, 7:21 pmOver the years took up different ID projects (trees one of the first) to keep me occupied and engaged while on the hoof (especially when hiking alone). Trial and error,etc., until it became easy to flick my eyes over the forest and recognize what had always been in front of me.
#pnw #bestlife #bitingflies #favoriteyellowcap #neverdispleased
Re: Conifer IDs
Fifteenmile Creek Loop (n. of Badger Creek Wilderness) has the highest diversity of conifers within a couple of hours of Portland - you get western junipers there as well as all the other species.
Northernmost sugar pines are in a few spots in the Clackamas drainage; northernmost incense cedars are just south of the Badger Creek Wilderness.
Northernmost sugar pines are in a few spots in the Clackamas drainage; northernmost incense cedars are just south of the Badger Creek Wilderness.