Abies procera Seeds | Noble Fir
LATIN NAME: Abies procera
COMMON NAME: Noble Fir
Plant Profile
Abies procera is the largest of the true firs, and old trees reach ninety metres with a trunk two metres through. The crown is narrow and spire-like, the branches are stiff and horizontal, and the foliage is a blue-green that stands out against the darker hemlock and Douglas fir around it. The bark is grey and smooth on young trees, breaking into plates on old ones.
The species grows on deep, moist mountain soils from Washington to northern California, usually between 600 and 1,800 metres, in forest that is buried in snow for half the year. The cones are the largest of any fir, upright on the top branches, fifteen to twenty-five centimetres long, greenish-purple before they ripen and brown when they break up on the tree.
Science & Biotechnology
The tree is a classic example of a species that depends on disturbance. Seedlings need mineral soil and light, and they establish on landslide scars, on lava flows and in the ash of old fires rather than in the shade of a closed canopy. The seed is winged and heavy enough to fall close to the parent, so a stand expands slowly unless something opens the ground.
Noble fir is also grown as a Christmas tree, and that industry has driven selection for colour and for needle retention. The blue colour comes from epicuticular wax on the needles, and the wax layer also reduces water loss, which is why a cut noble fir lasts longer indoors than most other firs. The timber is light, strong and straight-grained, and it was traditionally used for ladder rails and for aircraft frames.
Uses & Benefits
The wood is used for general construction, for plywood and for ladder stock, and the young trees are cut for Christmas trees in the Pacific north-west and in Europe. The boughs are sold for wreaths and for garlands, and the species is planted in arboreta for its blue foliage.
The resin was collected as a wound dressing and as a chewing gum by some coastal peoples, and the bark was used for baskets and for roofing. The tree is not used in modern medicine, and the seed is not a food crop, though the wing is easily rubbed off and the kernel is edible in small quantities.
Growing from Seed
Fir seed keeps badly, so use the current year’s crop. Stratify at 4 degrees for eight weeks, then sow on a free-draining mix at 18 to 20 degrees; germination is in three to five weeks. The seedlings are slow for two years and should be grown in a nursery bed before they are planted out.
The tree wants deep, moist, acid soil and a cool, humid site, and it dislikes both drought and heat. Plant it in spring while it is small, mulch with leaf mould and keep the roots shaded. It is hardy to about minus twenty-five, but it suffers on dry, exposed sites and in heavy clay.
Our Take
A blue-foliage fir for a cool, wet climate and a lot of space, grown as a specimen rather than as a crop.
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