Western hemlock

Leaves

Form

• Sides parallel, flat, finely toothed
• Length variable
• Blunt-tipped
• Needles clearly arranged in 2 ranks, with a few shorter ones on the upper side pressed against the twig

Length

• 5–20 mm

Colour

• Upper surface shiny dark green and grooved
• Whitened on lower surface with ill-defined lines of white dots on either side of the midvein

Buds

Form

• Globular

Length

• 2–3 mm

Twigs

Form

• Slender, hairy

Colour

• Brownish-grey

Seed cones (mature)

Form

• Ovoid, blunt-tipped
• Short-stalked

Length

• 20–25 mm

Colour

• Golden brown

Structure

• Scales rectangular
• Tip rounded
• Margin smooth or faintly toothed

Timing

• Cones open in autumn
• Seeds shed gradually
• Cones may stay on the tree for 1 or 2 years

Seedlings

Form

• Seedlings commonly found on rotten logs, or in partially decomposed forest litter

Bark

Form

• Smooth when young, becoming deeply furrowed with flat-topped scaly ridges

Colour

• Reddish-brown when young, becoming darker

Wood

Texture

• Moderately light, fairly hard and strong

Colour

• Whitish to dull light brown

Morphology

• Little contrast between sapwood and heartwood

Uses

• Wood pulp, lumber
• Siding, flooring, plywood, railway ties, boxes, and crates

Size

Height

• To 50 m

Diameter

• To 120 cm, occasionally larger

Maximum age

• 500 years

Tree form

Forest-grown

Trunk

• Lower trunk long, branch-free

Crown

• Open, conical, becoming irregular with age
• Leading shoot oblique, bending away from prevailing wind
• Principal branches coarse, spreading horizontally from the trunk
• Drooping sprays of branchlets giving a graceful appearance

Root system

• Shallow, wide-spreading

Habitat

Site

• Varied soils and in the mountains up to 1500 m

Light tolerance

• Very shade-tolerant
• Regenerates well under a closed canopy
• Thrives in full light and in shade

Associated species

• Grows in pure stands, but usually mixed with western redcedar, Douglas-fir, grand fir, black cottonwood, and red alder

Range

Pacific Coast, adjacent islands