Spotting the bigcone fir

RE “A Majesty for All Seasons” [Nov. 25]: I would love to see our very own Bigcone Douglas fir (a.k.a. bigcone spruce) used in large settings, perhaps as a street tree. Pseudotsuga macrocarpa not only trips lightly off the tongue, but it is also an elegant and graceful Southern California cousin of the Douglas fir that has adapted to our area. However, it is not easy to find and is mostly seen in the Angeles and Los Padres national forests.

Stands do thrive in the Santa Susana Mountains, mainly on the north-facing slopes but also in the upper, moister canyons and ravines just below the ridgeline above Chatsworth. Some specimens grow practically right down to the Golden State Freeway over the Newhall Pass.

A few of the trails in the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy’s parkland in the Santa Clarita Woodlands Park (particularly the East and Rice canyons trails) also give hikers and bicyclists up-close views of really big trees (the diameter of one is at least 3 1/2 feet).

A ranger has planted a number of bigcone spruces around the East Canyon ranger station and corrals, and they are growing fast. In addition, the mitigation nursery for the Sunshine Canyon landfill has been relatively successful in propagating the trees from seeds gathered on their land.

Rorie Ann Skei

Thousand Oaks

Skei is chief deputy director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.