Washington State Tree – Western Hemlock – Tsuga heterophylla
Leaf: Leaves single, linear, and spirally arranged (but somewhat 2-ranked);
short (1/4 to 3/4 inches long), flat, and have two distinctly different sizes
that alternate on the twig; yellow-green to green above with two white bands
below. Leaves have rounded tips and short, but distinct, petioles.
Flower: Monoecious; male cones are tiny, yellow, and occur axillary on previous
year’s growth; female cones are tiny, purple, and terminal.
Fruit: Small, woody, egg-shaped cones (about 1 inch long) with numerous thin,
imbricate scales; pendent, sessile, and terminal; reddish-brown; mature in one
Twig: Slender, flexible, and minutely pubescent, roughened by diagonally-raised
and rounded leaf scars.
Bark: Young bark is thin, superficially scaly, and brown to black. On mature
trees bark is thin (about 1 inch) with flattened ridges. Inner bark is dark
red streaked with purple.
Form: A large evergreen conifer that reaches 200 feet tall and 4 feet in diameter,
mature trees have a pyramidal crown and lacy foliage that droops at the terminal
Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson;
Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information