The Douglas-fir is one of the largest trees in North America growing up to
80-200 ft/24-61 m with trunk diameters of up to 5 ft/1.5 m.
There are two varieties in western North America: Coastal (which are bigger) and Rocky Mountain.

The needles of the Douglas-fir are flat and .75-1.25 in/2-3 cm long and are flexible and grooved. They are not prickly to the touch, unlike spruce trees.

The Douglas-fir is actually not classified as a true fir tree since its cones hang down, while those of true firs grow upward. The bark is dark brown, thick and rough. The tree is very well adapted to numerous habitats from the moist coast al regions to high elevations of over 11 000 ft/3 350 m

The Douglas-fir is also identified by the three-point bracet which sticks out from each cone scale. This spectacular tree of the west was named after Donald Douglas, a Scottish botanist.

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