What do redwood trees look like

The trees provide cover for many mammals such as the Roosevelt elk, black tailed deer and many other smaller mammals. But these great trees also provide a home to many pileated woodpeckers who build their nests inside the trees while also being a crucial home for the endangered marbled murrelet. In the past, Native Americans used the wood to make canoes and grave headings Griffith Nowadays, the soft but decay-resistant wood is used in many different products including dimensional stock lumber , shingles, table tops, veneers and turned goods Griffith The trees are also aesthetically and spiritually pleasing, so proper management and controlled logging of these trees needs to be enforced.

The Redwood forest in California is an amazing destination that we do not want to lose. Figure 4. California Redwood Forest. What we use it for In the past, Native Americans used the wood to make canoes and grave headings Griffith Olson, Jr. Roy, and Gerald A. Taxodiaceae -- Redwood family. Farjon, A. Sequoia sempervirens. California redwood also goes by the name coastal redwood. Other names for the species of redwood include coastal sequoia, Palo Colorado, or simply—redwood.

Each cone contains up to seven winged seeds that are about the size of a tomato seed. California redwood bark is a reddish-brown color with furrowed, scaly ridges. You can easily identify a California redwood by the soft feel of the fibrous bark. You will also notice that the cinnamon brown trunks have buttresses at the bottom. Sequoia sempervirens leaves on the lower canopy. California redwood tree leaves have two different types of needles.

The shorter conifer leaves on the upper branches grow on long shoots and only measure 0. The California redwood is identified by a slender, straight trunk and pyramidal canopy high up on the tree made up of slightly drooping branches. You can also spot California redwoods in the forest by sprouts emerging from the roots. Giant Redwood or Giant Sequoia Sequoiadendron giganteum.

The giant sequoia or giant redwood is an impressive conifer with reddish-brown spongy bark, large brown cones, broadly pyramidal crown, and blue-green needle leaves. Giant sequoias grow between and ft. As a popular ornamental tree, the giant sequoia is impressive to look at in redwood forests.

The giant sequoia also has the common names Sierra redwood, Wellingtonia, giant redwood, and big tree. Compared to the California redwood, the giant sequoia is overall more immense in terms of trunk size. Also, the massive sequoia trees grow in a limited area and are fewer in number. Giant redwood cones are the largest of all the species of redwoods. Each cone can contain hundreds of tiny seeds.

A single giant sequoia can produce as many as 11, cones. Giant sequoia bark is cinnamon-brown with distinct furrows and ridges running longitudinally. The giant sequoia redwood has awl-shaped, bluish-green needle leaves arranged spirally on a stem. The short, soft needles measure 0. In winter, small yellowish or green tufts appear as flowers on the ends of leaves. The giant sequoia is identified by its distinctive spongy red bark, large seed cones, and thick trunks.

For identification, look for the short leaves of a giant redwood. Dawn Redwood Metasequoia glyptostroboides. The dawn redwood is a deciduous conifer with dark green pinnate, needle leaves , light brown barrel-shaped cones, and dark brown bark growing on a broad trunk.

Dawn redwoods have a broad, conical crown, and the redwood grows between 60 and ft. Dawn redwoods are native to China, where they thrive in humid conditions, damp soil, and full sun.

Dawn redwood cones dangle in pendulous clusters and are less than an inch 2. The barrel-like redwood cones are dark brown when mature. The ovoid cones are made up of 16 to 28 scales arranged in pairs at right angles.

This picture shows young growth. The Japanese Cedar Cryptomeria japonica is a tree that can very easily be mistaken for a Giant Redwood, especially from a distance. Closer inspection shows a more open arrangement of the leaflets, giving a slightly more "twisted" effect to the overall look of the tree. Watch out for this "imposter"! Foliage of the Japanese Cedar.

This picture shows dried opened cones. Coast Redwood Sequoia sempervirens. The Coast Redwood, or Sequoia sempervirens , is usually referred to simply as the "Redwood". Although it does not grow as broad as the Giant Redwood, it does grow a little taller. It is in fact recognised as the tallest of trees, and many examples are currently measured at around metres in their remaining native habitat of California.

Some years ago, I understand that a group of people found a Douglas Fir which had grown to over metres, but the fools only realised this when measuring it after having cut it down to make a flagpole savages The bark of the Coast Redwood is similar to the Giant Redwood in that it is grows thick, and although relatively soft compared to most trees, it is a little firmer or harder. This affords it the same protection against fire as the Giant Redwood.

Also, the trunk has a more parallel profile at the base, unlike the conical outward sweep of the Giant Redwood. The leaves are very different, being flatter and softer and shaped rather like the Yew, unlike the short spiky leaves of the Giant Redwood. Foliage of the Coast Redwood with male "cones", notice the alternately spaced needles. Fluted bark has many ridges that cover the outside of the tree bark.

Pull off a piece of the bark. On redwood trees, the outer bark pulls away easily to reveal a soft, fibrous bark underneath the surface. Pay attention to the size of the tree. Size is the most prominent feature of all redwoods, which are all quite large. Coast Redwoods are the tallest redwood and can grow as high as feet m.

However, these trees are relatively thin. The Giant Redwood is thicker in girth, but not quite as tall, growing up to around feet 91 m when it is fully mature.

Know the difference between giant sequoias and redwoods. Sequoia trees are often confused for redwoods because of their similar height and habitat. Sequoias, however, have thicker trunks and coarser bark than redwoods, which have a slender trunk. Look at the color of the bark. Sequoias have a bright reddish-brown bark while redwoods have a dull chocolate brown. Method 3. Examine the leaves and cones of a Giant Redwood. A giant redwood has unique leaves and cones. In particular, its small cones are an excellent way to identify a Giant Redwood.

This allows them to breathe in air the most easily. The leaves look much like needles, but they are not as sharp as other evergreen trees. Be careful not to confuse the leaves of a Japanese cedar with that of a Giant Redwood. Though their leaves are similar, the cedar has a more tangled appearance in its leaf structure than the Giant Redwood.

Often, they will fit in the palm of your hand and are about the size of a golf ball. Identify the leaves and cones of a Dawn Redwood. Dawn Redwoods can occasionally have different color leaves, especially during the fall and winter. Its cones are also rather small and usually only common in places with warmer summers.

The leaves of a Dawn Redwood are flattened and relatively fine. They are generally symmetrical and have opposing needle-like structures. These leaves also change color in the fall and winter. In contrast, the leaves for other species of redwood are evergreen. Dawn Redwood leaves will be an orange and yellow color when they are changing. However, Dawn Redwood have each leaf connected to the same spot of the stem, whereas these other trees have leaves with alternate arrangement. These tree can also have male and female cones.

Since cones are generally female, the male cones look more like green pearls.