Hemlocks are easy to identify. They have short (1”), flat grooved, glossy, green-yellow needles and 2” cones found near branch tips, standing erect until mature. Pictured is the rarer form of hemlock, the Mountain, as it prefers higher elevations. Needles are single and extend out from all sides of a twig. This is unlike its Western Hemlock cousin, found everywhere in this area, with needles that have a flattened appearance. If in doubt about a hemlock, how the needles are arranged on a twig is a key. The Western, also called Black Hemlock, found in a variety of locations: moist, dry, understory and in open meadows. A Tree and a member of the Pinaceae Family, the Mountain grows by Kiosk 06, the Western by Kiosk 7. Pilchuck Learning Center’s sponsored Western Washington State University SAM Project extinction possibility is slight; abundant, both found in the Rocky Mountains with little chance of extinction.
http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Tsuga+mertensiana
https://burkeherbarium.org/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Tsuga%20mertensiana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsuga_mertensiana
https://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=TSME
https://www.plc215.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Kiosk-06.pdf
https://www.plc215.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Kiosk-07.pdf
http://www.burkemuseum.org/research-and-collections/botany-and-herbarium/collections/database/results.php?Genus=Tsuga&Species=mertensiana&SourcePage=search.php&IncludeSynonyms=Y&SortBy=DESC&SortOrder=Year
Mountain Helmlock’s short needles are arranged around a twig, whereas Western Hemlock’s needles are:
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