Common Names: Rocky mountain Douglas-fir
Habitat: temperate climates.

Description: "fir is flat". medium-size to large or very large evergreen trees, to 20-100 m tall. The leaves are flat and needle-like, generally resembling those of the firs. The female cones are pendulous, with persistent scales (unlike true firs), and are distinct in having a long tridentine (three-pointed) bract that protrudes prominently above each scale.

Comments: douglas-firs gave 19th century botanists problems due to their similarity to various other conifers better known at the time. Because of the distinctive cones, douglas-firs were finally placed in the new genus Pseudotsuga (meaning "false Tsuga"). The hyphen in the common name indicates that douglas-firs are not true firs, i.e. they are not members of the genus Abies.

Hint There is some confusion between White Fir (a true fir) and Douglas-fir (not a fir). White Fir has a strong symmetrical growth habit, meaning that the branches on limbs are opposite and when young, there is almost always a branch or limb that mirrors another. The leaves are also blueish in color (glaucous) and if crushed they are very fragrant. Doug-fir has a less symmetrical growth form, and has alternate, rather than opposite branching. Leaves are not shiny, or glaucous, and in the southern Rockies, they are not blueish green. Also, they are not as fragrant when crushed.

Source: Wikipedia