Dichotomous Key to Common Trees of the Pacific Northwest <http://oregonstate.

edu/trees/>
Gymnosperms (Conifers and Yew)

1a. Tree a conifer (conifers have needlelike or scale-like leaves and usually bear seeds inside woody cones) ......2
2a. Leaves needle-like ........................................................................................................................................3
3a. Needles clustered ...................................................................................................................................4
4a. Clusters of 2-5 needles ................................................................................................... pine (Pinus)
• Two needles per bundle ................................................................lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta)
• Three needles per bundle ...............................................................................................................
....................ponderosa (P. ponderosa), Jeffrey (P. jeffreyi) and knobcone pine (P. attenuata)
• Five needles per bundle .......... western white (P. monticola), sugar (P. lambertiana), limber (P.
flexilis) and whitebark pine (P. albicaulis)
4b. Clusters greater than 10 ...................................................................................................................5
5a. Needles soft (deciduous) ......................................................................................... larch (Larix)
• Our only larch ................................................................. western larch (Larix occidentalis)
5a. Needles stiff (evergreen) .............................................................................. true cedar (Cedrus)
• *................................................................................................... deodar cedar (C. deodara)
• *...................................................................................................... atlas cedar (C. atlantica)
• *................................................................................................ cedar of Lebanon (C. libani)
3b. Needles not clustered .............................................................................................................................6
6a. Needles short and sharp .............................. giant (redwood) sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)
6b. Needles longer than ½" ....................................................................................................................7
7a. Tiny pegs on twigs .....................................................................................................................8
8a. Pegs square, needles sharp ............................................................................. spruce (Picea)
• * .............................................................................................. Sitka spruce (P. sitchensis)
• * ................................................................................ Engelmann spruce (P. engelmannii)
• * ........................................................................................ Brewer spruce (P. breweriana)
8b. Pegs rounded, needles blunt....................................................................... hemlock (Tsuga)
• * ................................................................................ mountain hemlock (T. mertensiana)
• * .................................................................................. western hemlock (T. heterophylla)
7b. No pegs on twigs........................................................................................................................9
9a. Buds large and pointed ................................................ Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)
9b. Buds not large and pointed ................................................................................................10
10a. Terminal buds round and clustered ........................................................ true fir (Abies)
• * ................................................................................................. grand fir (A. grandis)
• * .................................................................................... Pacific silver fir (A. amabilis)
• * ................................................................................................. noble fir (A. procera)
• * ................................................................................ California red fir (A. magnifica)
• * ...................................................................................... subalpine fir (A. lasiocarpa)
• * ................................................................................................white fir (A. concolor)
10b. Terminal buds not clustered .......................................................................................11
11a. Needles green underneath ....................................... Pacific yew (Taxus brevifolia)
11b. Needles white underneath ....................................................................................12
12a. Needles pointed .............................. (coastal) redwood (Sequoia sempervirens)
12a. Needles blunt.......................................................................... hemlock (see 8b)
2b. Leaves flattened and scale-like ..................................................................................................................13
13a. All leaves short and sharp ............................... giant (redwood) sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum)
13b. Some leaves not sharp ........................................................................................................................14
14a. Cones round .................................................................................................................................15
15a. Cones soft and leathery ............................................................................... juniper (Juniperus)
• * ............................................................................................ western juniper (J. occidentalis)
• * ..............................................................................................common juniper (J. communis)
 • * .............................................................................. Rocky Mountain juniper (J. scopularum)
15b. Cones woody..........................................................................................................................16
16a. Cones under ½" diameter ....................................................white-cedar, etc. (false cedars)
• * ............................................................................ incense-cedar (Calocedrus decurrans)
• * ................................................................... arborvitae; western redcedar (Thuja plicata)
• * ................................................................ white-cedar or false cypress (Chamaecyparis)
• * ............................................................................ Port Orford-cedar (C. lawsoniana)
• * .................................................................................. Alaska-cedar (C. nootkatensis)
16b. Cones over ½" diameter ............................................... Baker cypress (Cupressus bakerii)
14a. Cones not round ...........................................................................................................................17
17a. Cones resemble rose buds ........................................................... redcedar/arborvitae (see 16a)
17b. Cones resemble duck's bill ................................................................... incense-cedar (see 16a)

1b. Tree a broadleaf (usually with wide, flat leaves and bear their seeds inside of soft fruits) .............................18