1. 2. Giant Redwood (Sequoiadendron giganteum)
1. Douglas Fir Glen
As you pass through the arbor at the entrance to the Smith Mossman garden, you are sheltered by a canopy of Douglas firs that reach 100’ into the sky. These firs are named after collector and explorer, David Douglas, who roamed Washington in the early 1800’s.
Notice the native plants in the understory. You will see a typical mix of plants found in Douglas fir forests in western Washington. These plants include salal, Oregon grape, vine maple, and evergreen huckleberry.
As you walk along the path you will notice smaller, “dwarf” conifers growing in the shadow of their towering cousins. These cultivars exhibit most of the characteristics of their
full-sized relatives, but their growth rate can be as little as an inch per year.
Besides size differences, cultivars can exhibit unique shapes and colors that make them desirable in home landscaping.
‘Chief Joseph’ pines front towering Douglas firs.
The giant redwood growing in the Arboretum probably was planted at the inception of the Arboretum (in 1965), making it years old. This tree is one of three species of conifers known as redwoods – the other two are Sequoia sempervirens (coast redwood) and Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood) both of which can be found in the Arboretum.
Enjoy a walk to the shade of this giant tree and take note of the beautiful ferns and perennials growing in the understory along the path.
Fittingly, our giant specimen, which can live years, anchors the Woodland Garden - the Arboretum’s oldest garden. This garden hosts the Arboretum’s collections of hydrangeas, big leaf rhododendrons, and Japanese maples.
2. Giant Redwood (Sequoiadendron giganteum)
3. Nurse Log
As they decay, fallen trees or leftover stumps, called “nurse logs” provide shade, nutrients, water and habitat - nurturing the growth of the next generation of plants.
As a nurse log decomposes, niches of increasing size, fill with forest litter. This organic material and the woody material of the log itself, are broken down into humus by microorganisms such as fungi and bacteria. Mosses covering the outside of a log also serve to retain water hastening decay while supporting other plants as rooting media. Wind and water driven soil also “catches” on the log, further enhancing the log’s growth medium for plants.
Plants aren’t the only ones that benefit from a nurse log. Small animals perch on nurse nurse logs and use them as a highway above the forest floor. Their scat fertilizes and adds seed to the humus. These small animals also are targeted by larger
predators. In a nurse log we see Mother Nature’s circle of life – the perpetual, beneficial interaction among producers (plants), consumers (animals), and decomposers (insects, fungi).
4. Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata)
No wonder the Salish names for Western red cedar include “Long Life Giver”, “Rich Woman Maker” and “Mother.” It provided for NW Coastal Indians from birth to death – from cradles to coffins. This tree has the greatest recorded number of uses (368!) of any plant used by Native Americans.
“I am the heat of your hearth on the cold winter nights, the friendly shade screening you from summer sun, and the dancing bows [sic] that capture your imagination. I am the beam that holds your house, the board of your table, and the roof that shelters you from rain. I am the handle of your shovel, the bark of your basket, and the hull of your canoe. I am the medicine that heals you, the incense that carries your prayers, and tea that is used to cleanse your home. I am the wood of your cradle and the shell of your coffin. I am the breath of kindness and the flower of beauty. Ye who pass by me, listen to my prayer: Harm me not.”
-Adapted by Elise Krohn from a Portuguese forest preservation prayer
A native to the PNW and the northern Rockies, this shade- tolerant tree thrives in cool, damp western Washington. It can grow to 200’ and live for years. Plicata means “pleated” – referring to this plant’s small over-lapping leaves. Small, upright, light brown seed cones grow to 1/2” long.
Small cones, pleated leaves.