What kind of trees in yosemite

Fully grown California Black Oaks typically range from 30 to 80 feet in height, though the largest may exceed feet in height, with trunks up to 5 feet in diameter. This broad, spreading species produces large acorns up to 3cm long and 2cm wide , with expansive limbs that stretch in all directions and require ample space to gather light.

In a spacious climate, these oaks can sprawl as wide as 50 feet from limb to limb, with a rounded crown and lower limbs that drape low, often nearly kissing the ground. Its bark is thin and smooth in the early stages of its growth, but becomes thick, deeply fissured, and platy as the tree matures.

Douglas Fir. Its branchlets have short leaf stems that grow around the twigs in spirals, tending to be flat on horizontal branches, but evenly spaced on drooping branches, creating a full, rounded aesthetic. The needles are short, flat, glossy, light-green above, and gray-green beneath. In late-spring, tufts of new leaves appear vividly yellow-green and contrast strikingly with the older, darker foliage.

Sugar Pine. Quickly identifiable by their dwarfing size, these rigid, slender, sharp-pointed trees present their leaves in a deep blue-green color. They usually take root at elevations ranging between 4, and 7, feet. Giant Sequoia. Funnily enough, their egg-shaped cones are relatively dainty—only two or three inches long—though their cinnamon-red, fissured bark can be more than two feet thick along the monstrous trunks.

Only three groves of Giant Sequoias remain in Yosemite today—the Mariposa, Merced, and Tuolumne Groves—where the ancient species have been protected against logging since their discovery by western cultures in the mids. Ponderosa Pine.

It can appear nearly identical to the Jeffery Pine, and in fact can hybridize with the Jeffery, so telling them apart can be a bit tricky. The main physical difference lies mostly in its location, with the Ponderosa generally residing at lower elevations though there are plenty of exceptions , as well as in the scent see the Jeffery Pine section below for a fun fact on that.

Opposite-leaved tarweed 24 Hemizonella minima. Hulsea heterochroma Annual Desert-Dandelion 47 Malacothrix clevelandii. Woolly Desertdandelion 48 Malacothrix floccifera. Oreostemma alpigenum var. Pseudognaphalium beneolens Complete guide including all photos and descriptions, spanning multiple pages. Split page, species info on the left, room for notes on the right. Species info will be truncated to fit on the page.

All taxa in this guide. It is universally proclaimed the most graceful tree of the mountains. Pillsbury bleak surroundings only enhance its graceful charm. The Douglas fir Pseudotsuga taxifolia is the most important timber tree in the world.

In Oregon and Washington it forms great forests, but here near the southern limit of its range we find it sparsely mixed with other species of the middle altitudes. The true firs genus Abies differ from all their American relatives of the Pine Family by bearing erect cones.

These generally occur at the very tips of the trees, and since the scales and seeds are shed one by one and blown away by the winds, they are almost never found beneath the trees. Of our nine American firs two species inhabit the Sierra Nevada. The white fir Abies concolor is common at middle altitudes, ranging from to feet, while the red fir Abies magnifica claims the higher slopes.

Both Species are beautifully symmetrical with erect, narrow, dense, spire-like crowns and delicate regularly whorled branches. All firs are lovers of shade and therefore grow in dense stands crowding out the less tolerant species. The white fir may be identified a by the leaves, which are 1 to 2 inches long, without leaf stalks, and flattened or two-ranked on the lower branchlets, b by the bark which in the younger trees is white and bears balsam blisters and in the older trees is deeply furrowed, corky, and ashy gray in color, c by the cones which are 3 to 5 inches in length and borne erect near the tops of the trees, and d by the habitat, the tree generally occurring at middle altitudes as an associate of yellow and sugar pines.

The Redwood Family Taxodiaceae is represented in the United States by only three species and in Yosemite National Park by a single species, the giant sequoia Sequoia gigantea. This tree, widely famed as the oldest and largest living thing, occurs in but twenty-six groves which are all found in the middle elevations of the Sierra Nevada from the vicinity of Lake Tahoe on the north to the region about Kings River Canyon on the south.

There are three groves in the park, the nearest to Yosemite being The following chapter is entirely devoted to the habits and history of this most wonderful tree. In its natural habitat the tree is seldom confused with any of its associates. The members of the Cypress Family Cupressaceae , in which are the many so-called American cedars, all have scale-like leaves and stringy fibrous bark. Two Yosemite trees belong to this family. The incense cedar Libocedrus decurrens is one of the most abundant trees in the Valley and on the talus slopes above.

The vivid green of its perfectly formed crown contrasted with its fluted brown trunk make it a constant object of admiration. The western juniper Juniperus occidentalis is an inhabitant of the upper slopes and is generally found above the Valley rim on exposed rocky sites where its gnarled form picturesquely decorates the bare granite pavements.

Scattered specimens may be found struggling upward in most unhospitable places almost to timberline. The characteristics which easily identify the species are a its gnarled form, b its thin, stringy, light cinnamon-brown bark, c its tiny scale-like leaves which are arranged in whorls of three around the branchlets and are closely pressed to the twigs, and d its fruit which is a small blue berry with a sweetish, pungent, aromatic taste.

The berries are really modified cones. A most interesting little evergreen is the California nutmeg Tumion californicum , a close relative to the conifers. A few specimens may be found in the canyon of the Merced below Cascade Falls. The sharp-pointed needle-like leaves which range in length from 1 to 2 inches are flattened in two ranks along the branchlets and omit a very characteristic pungent odor when bruised. The broad-leaved trees of the park are of comparatively little importance—far less so than would appear from a casual inspection of the oak-dotted floor of Yosemite Valley.

These deciduous trees grow at the lower elevations and prefer the rich bottomlands and moist stream margins. The oaks are predominant. In the hot foothills is the valley white oak Quercus lobata which, in the region about El Portal is replaced by the Caldomia black oak Quercus californica , gigantic specimens of which may be seen throughout the canyon of the Merced and in Yosemite Valley.

The latter may be distinguished by its large leaves, the deep lobes of which are sharply pointed, and by the dark bark which is deeply checked into small plates.

The talus slopes above the Valley floor are the favorite habitat of the canyon live oak Quercus chrysolepis which may be distinguished by its whitish bark and by its small entire and toothed leaves on the same twigs, the old leaves being lead color beneath, PLATE XXI Mountain Hemlocks on the rim of Matterhorn Canyon Photo by Walter L.

Huber arid the young leaves yellow powdery beneath. Above feet one commonly finds the dwarf huckleberry oak Quercus vaccinifolia , a shrub 4 to 8 feet high which much resembles the canyon live oak. Another common tree of the talus slopes is the California laurel or " bay " Umbellularia californica. The evergreen, smooth, shiny leaves have a most agreeable camphoric-pungent odor when crushed, and are dried and used for spice.

Another must-visit tree is the Bachelor and Three Graces. This beautiful cluster is a very popular spot for photos. However, the most famous tree in the grove is the Grizzly Giant, one of the largest trees in the Mariposa Grove and, at an estimated age of 2, years, one of the oldest living sequoia. Beyond the Grizzly Giant sit hundreds of lesser-visited sequoias in the upper grove including the Clothespin Tree, the Faithful Couple and the fallen Wawona Tunnel Tree.

Reaching the upper grove is a longer hike with elevation gains, but well worth the exercise! When shuttle buses are running, you can catch one here. Hike : You can also walk from Wawona to the Mariposa Grove.