Lookalikes

Douglas fir or western hemlock?

Both grow in the same wet plantations, with a similar spire.

The quickest check

The quickest check is the top of the tree. Douglas fir: a narrow spire, flat or ragged when old. Western hemlock: leading shoot bent right over and hanging.

At a glance

Look at	Douglas fir	Western hemlock
Top of the tree	A narrow spire, flat or ragged when old	Leading shoot bent right over and hanging
Along a shoot	Needles standing out on every side	Two flat rows, short on top, long at the sides
Size of a fallen cone	About 6 cm long	Under 3 cm, small and oval
Bark of an old trunk	Thick and corky, cracks opening orange	Dark brown and thin, in scaly ridges

Four ways to tell them apart

Top of the treeShape

Douglas firA narrow spire, flat or ragged when old

Western hemlockLeading shoot bent right over and hanging

Along a shootLeaves

Douglas fir: along a shoot — Douglas firNeedles standing out on every side

Western hemlock: along a shoot — Western hemlockTwo flat rows, short on top, long at the sides

Size of a fallen coneCones

Douglas fir: size of a fallen cone — Douglas firAbout 6 cm long

Western hemlock: size of a fallen cone — Western hemlockUnder 3 cm, small and oval

Bark of an old trunkBark

Douglas fir: bark of an old trunk — Douglas firThick and corky, cracks opening orange

Western hemlock: bark of an old trunk — Western hemlockDark brown and thin, in scaly ridges

Think you can tell them apart now? Try the tree quiz: real photographs, and what gives each tree away.Take the quiz

The two trees

Douglas fir

Pseudotsuga menziesii

Douglas fir is a tall, slender conifer. A thin three-pointed strap pokes out from under every scale of its hanging cones. Its soft needles smell sweet and fruity when crushed.

How to identify Douglas fir →

Western hemlock

Tsuga heterophylla

Western hemlock is a narrow, spire-shaped conifer whose top shoot bends right over and hangs. Its flat needles come in two lengths on the same shoot.

How to identify western hemlock →

Their other lookalikes

Douglas fir or grand fir?Quickest check: the shoot from above

Douglas fir or giant redwood?Quickest check: the leaves on a shoot

In the app

See them side by side in Treely

Both trees, part by partLeaves, bark, buds, flowers and fruit, photographed through the year
Every lookalike side by sideThe checks that settle it, for every pair people mix up
A short round each dayUntil you can tell them apart at a glance
The full GuideBoth trees written up in full, with where to find them

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Every fact on this page is checked against the Collins Tree Guide, last in November 2026. Spotted something that looks wrong in front of a real tree? Tell us. How we check.

Photographs: jamie-aa (CC BY 4.0), bradenjudson (CC0), bobwardell (CC0), rambryum (CC0), Barry Walter (CC BY 4.0), humon (CC BY 4.0). With thanks to everyone who shares their photographs on iNaturalist and Wikimedia Commons.