Abies procera aka Red Fir

Abies procera, also known as the noble fir, red fir, Christmas tree, is a species of fir native to the Cascade Range and Pacific Coast Ranges of the northwestern Pacific Coast of the United States. It is a picturesque, long-lived tree with a conical crown and blue needles. The golden cultivar of this fir has a pyramidal crown and golden-green foliage, with needles that are up to 3.5cm long and up-curved. The golden color is most prominent on parts exposed to sunlight, while the interior is greener. This cultivar has a slower growth rate compared to the species, reaching a height of approximately 1 meter after 10 years and later growing into a large tree. The annual growth rate is around 10-15 cm per year. A. procera is a high-altitude tree that typically occurs at altitudes of 300–1,500 meters. It can reach heights of up to 70 meters, with a narrow conic crown. The bark on young trees is smooth and gray, becoming red-brown, rough, and fissured on older trees. The leaves are needle-like, glaucous blue-green in color, and arranged spirally on the shoot. The cones are erect and can reach lengths of 11–22 cm, with purple scales that are mostly hidden by long exserted yellow-green bract scales. The specific epithet "procera" means "tall." This fir species is closely related to red fir (A. magnifica), which can be distinguished by the presence of a groove along the midrib on the upper side of the leaves. Red fir also has less closely packed leaves, with the shoot bark visible between them. Some botanists consider A. magnifica var. shastensis to be a hybrid between noble fir and red fir.