Meet Spokane's Native Conifers: Four Trees That Define Our Forests
Spokane sits at the crossroads of two distinct forest types — the dry ponderosa pine parklands of the Columbia Plateau and the wetter mixed forests rising toward the Idaho border. The result is a remarkable variety of native conifers within an easy drive of downtown. Here are four you're most likely to encounter, and what makes each one special.
1. Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) — Spokane's Official City Tree
iNaturalist · USDA PLANTS (PIPO)
Spokane adopted the ponderosa pine as its official city tree on April 22, 2014 — a fitting tribute to a species that has shaped this landscape for millennia. The very first scientific record of the tree came from near present-day Spokane, when Scottish botanist David Douglas documented it in 1826 during an expedition through the Columbia Plateau.
The variety found east of the Cascades — subsp. ponderosa, sometimes called the North Plateau ponderosa — is distinguished by its purple immature cones and long needles bundled in groups of three (12–20.5 cm). Stand close to a large, old-growth ponderosa and press your nose into a furrow of its orange, puzzle-piece bark: you'll catch a distinct vanilla or butterscotch scent, one of the most-loved surprises in Pacific Northwest botany.
Why it thrives here: Ponderosa pine is drought-adapted and shade-intolerant, perfectly suited to Spokane's drier east-side climate. Its thick, corky bark is highly fire-resistant — mature trees routinely survive low-intensity surface fires that kill competing shrubs and smaller trees. This fire adaptation helped ponderosa pine dominate the open parkland forests that Indigenous peoples managed with fire for thousands of years.
Threats: Mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae), working in partnership with the blue-stain fungus Grosmannia clavigera, kills trees by girdling them beneath the bark. Dense, fire-suppressed stands are especially vulnerable.
Quick ID: Three long needles per bundle · Orange puzzle-piece bark (vanilla scent on mature trees) · Purple immature cones · Open, park-like spacing
Mature ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) — Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain
2. Western Larch (Larix occidentalis) — The Conifer That Fakes Autumn
iNaturalist · USDA PLANTS (LAOC)
If you've ever driven through the mountains east of Spokane in October and spotted a tree that looked like a deciduous hardwood turned gold among the evergreens — you found a western larch. It is the only major conifer in the region that drops its needles every fall, turning brilliant golden yellow before shedding. Locally, many people call it "tamarack," though true tamarack (Larix laricina) is a different species found further east.
Western larch is native to eastern Washington, northern Idaho, western Montana, and southeastern British Columbia — the entire Columbia River drainage. It grows on forested slopes throughout the mountains surrounding Spokane.
Identification: The needles are very fine and soft (2–5 cm), growing in dense clusters of 15–30 or more on stubby spur shoots along the branches. Small ovoid cones (2–5 cm) have protruding bracts that stick out from between the scales, giving the cones a distinctive fringed look. The bark is thick, orange-brown to purple, and deeply furrowed on mature trees.
Ecology: Like ponderosa pine, western larch has exceptional fire resistance — its thick bark and non-flammable foliage allow it to survive fires that kill grand fir and Douglas-fir. It's also shade-intolerant, relying on disturbance (fire, logging, wind) to open the canopy and let seedlings establish. Larch can live up to 1,000 years; the largest known specimen stands ~50 m tall near Seeley Lake, Montana.
Where to see them: Mount Spokane State Park, the upper Selkirk Mountains, and the Kaniksu National Forest all have excellent larch populations. The fall color display, typically mid-October, is one of the Pacific Northwest's most underrated natural spectacles.
Quick ID: Soft, fine needles in clusters on spur shoots · Turns golden yellow and drops needles in fall · Small cones with protruding bracts · Tall, narrow crown
Western larch (Larix occidentalis) displaying fall color — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
3. Grand Fir (Abies grandis var. idahoensis) — The Citrus-Scented Understory Giant
iNaturalist · USDA PLANTS (ABGR)
The interior variety of grand fir (var. idahoensis) is native to the east slope of the Washington Cascades, the Idaho Panhandle, and northwestern Montana. In Spokane's surrounding forests, it often fills the mid-slope and north-facing hollows where moisture lingers.
Crush a small handful of the flat, glossy needles: they release a bright citrus scent — a reliable field identifier. The needles lie flat in two ranks, are notched at the tips, and show bright white stomatal bands on the underside. Cones stand upright on branches (6–12 cm long) and disintegrate in place at maturity — you'll almost never find an intact fallen grand fir cone.
Look for: Flat needles in two neat ranks like a comb, bright white stripes on the underside. Crush one needle — it smells like citrus. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Ecology: Grand fir is the most shade-tolerant of the four species covered here, and that tolerance has become a serious problem. Decades of fire suppression in the 20th century allowed grand fir to expand aggressively into habitats previously dominated by ponderosa pine and western larch. Those encroaching grand firs create fuel ladders — continuous vegetation from the forest floor to the canopy — that can turn what would have been a low-intensity surface fire into a catastrophic crown fire. Restoration ecologists and land managers, including ConiFriends volunteers, work to reduce this fire risk by selectively removing young grand firs from at-risk areas. Grand fir is also a major host of the western spruce budworm, which has killed millions of acres of fir and Douglas-fir across the Interior West.
Cultural uses: The Okanagan-Colville people used grand fir bark medicinally. The boughs are fragrant enough that grand fir is a popular Christmas tree — though its stiff branches make ornament-hanging tricky.
Quick ID: Flat needles in two distinct ranks · Citrus scent when crushed · Upright cones that disintegrate (don't fall intact) · Shade-tolerant; often dense in understory
Grand fir (Abies grandis var. idahoensis) — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
4. Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca)
iNaturalist · USDA PLANTS (PSME)
Despite its common name, Douglas-fir is not a true fir — it belongs to its own genus, Pseudotsuga, which literally means "false hemlock." The species was named for David Douglas, the same Scottish botanist who first documented ponderosa pine near Spokane in 1826. The eastern "Rocky Mountain" variety (var. glauca) is found throughout the Interior West from central British Columbia south to the Mexican border.
Identification: The flat, soft needles (1.5–4 cm) grow singly rather than in bundles or clusters, and they spiral all the way around the branches. The cones (6–10 cm) hang downward and are famous for their distinctive three-pointed bracts that protrude above each scale — botanists describe them as resembling a mouse with two hind legs and a tail. Mature bark becomes very thick (up to 36 cm!) with deep vertical furrows — one of the most fire-resistant barks of any Pacific Northwest conifer.
Needles: Single needles spiraling all around the branch — soft, not prickly. Wikimedia Commons
Bark: Very thick and corky with deep, narrow vertical fissures. Wikimedia Commons
Ecology: Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir is moderately shade-tolerant — more so than ponderosa pine or western larch, but less so than grand fir. In the absence of fire, it often expands into areas historically dominated by ponderosa pine and larch. It can live up to 400 years in eastern Washington conditions and provides important wildlife habitat: seeds are a critical food for chipmunks, moles, shrews, and Douglas squirrels, which cache thousands of cones.
Quick ID: Single needles spiraling all around branch · Hanging cones with distinctive "mouse tail" three-pronged bracts · Thick deeply-furrowed bark · Not a true fir!
Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca) — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
At-a-Glance Comparison
Feature | Ponderosa Pine | Western Larch | Grand Fir | Douglas-fir |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Needles | 3 per bundle, 12–20 cm | Clusters of 15–30+ on spur shoots | Flat, 2-ranked, citrus scent | Single, spiraling around branch |
Cones | Spiny, 7–15 cm, purple when young | Small, 2–5 cm, protruding bracts | Upright, disintegrate on tree | Hanging, "mouse tail" bracts |
Bark | Orange puzzle-piece, vanilla scent | Thick, orange-brown, furrowed | Gray-red, resin blisters when young | Thick, deeply furrowed, corky |
Fall color | Stays green | Turns brilliant gold, drops needles | Stays green | Stays green |
Fire resistance | Very high | Very high | Low | High |
Shade tolerance | Low | Low | High | Moderate |
Typical lifespan | 300–600 years | Up to 1,000 years | ~100–300 years | Up to 400 years (interior) |
Get Involved
The best way to learn these trees is to stand next to them. ConiFriends volunteers plant and tend ponderosa pine and other native conifers at restoration sites throughout the Spokane region. Check our events calendar to find your next planting work party, and bring your curiosity — our team loves talking trees.
Further reading:
USDA Plants Database — authoritative species profiles
iNaturalist — photo ID help and regional observation maps