The western Olympic rainforest is dominated by four conifer species, each favoring different conditions: Sitka spruce near the coast and rivers, western hemlock regenerating on decaying wood, Douglas-fir reaching the greatest size and age, and western red cedar in the wettest sites. Their differing tolerances partition the forest, contributing to its structural diversity and dense canopy.
Learn to tell the big trees apart and the forest gets a lot more interesting. Four giants build this place. The Sitka spruce, with its silvery, flaky bark, crowds nearest the coast and the river bottoms. The western hemlock, with its drooping leader tip, sprouts thick on the rotting logs. The Douglas-fir, with deep corky furrows in its bark, towers oldest and tallest. And the western red cedar, with stringy shredding bark, leans into the wettest hollows. Each one has staked out the conditions it likes best, and together they layer the whole valley in green.
Photo: Kimon Berlin (KimonBerlin) · CC BY-SA 2.0
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