California Red Fir, Red Fir - Abies magnifica

It is a large evergreen tree typically up to 40-60 m tall and 2 m trunk diameter, rarely to 76 m tall and 3 m diameter, with a narrow conic crown. The bark on young trees is smooth, grey, and with resin blisters, becoming orange-red, rough and fissured on old trees. The leaves are needle-like, 2-3.5 cm long, glaucous blue-green above and below with strong stomatal bands, and an acute tip.

They are arranged spirally on the shoot, but twisted slightly s-shaped to be upcurved above the shoot. The cones are erect, 9-21 cm long, yellow-green (occasionally purple), ripening brown and disintegrating to release the winged seeds in fall. Cones stand upright on branches Needle-like leaves bend upward It is a high altitude tree, typically occurring at 1,400-2,700 m altitude, though only rarely reaching tree line .

The name Red Fir derives from the bark color of old trees.There are two, perhaps three varieties.  Trees on the eastern side of the southern Sierra Nevada also have long bracts, and additionally have smaller cones, 9-15 cm long. These trees, possibly a third variety, have not been formally named. Red Fir is very closely related to Noble Fir ( Abies procera ), which replaces it further north in the Cascade Range . They are best distinguished by the leaves; Noble Fir leaves have a groove along the midrib on the upper side, while Red Fir does not show this. Red Fir also tends to have the leaves less closely packed, with the shoot bark visible between the leaves

Comments:

Used for timber and pulp

Characteristics

Christmas Tree

Evergreen

Screen/Windbreak

Timber

Specimen Tree

Winter Interest