What's in a Name?
Over the course of Tales of the Timber, we have often mentioned the great Douglas Fir tree and all the roles it plays.
The tree is a frequent world traveler as timber companies have imported and planted it throughout Europe and New Zealand.
Additionally, the tree produces more lumber than any other tree in North America. It provided the structural backbone for many of America’s industrial buildings, log cabins, railroad ties, and mines.
Douglas Fir trees have also been a staple throughout the holiday season. Since the 1920’s, they have been one of the best-selling Christmas trees because of their strong scent and perfect angular, bushy shape. Christmas tree enthusiasts so covet Douglas Firs that they ship them as far as Guam and Asia.
David Douglas, a Scottish botanist who explored America for new plant species, first cultivated the Douglas Fir tree along with hundreds of other new plants in 1827 during his exploration of the Pacific Northwest. To honor David Douglas and his discoveries, Douglas Fir trees, numerous schools, and many parks are named after him.
However, the Douglas Fir tree is named after another person as well. You see, David Douglas was not truly the first person to come across the tree. In the competitive world of science and botany, Douglas’ adversary Archibald Menzies discovered the tree on Vancouver Island about 35 years before him. For that reason, the tree’s scientific name, Pseudotsuga menziesii, is named after Menzies.
No matter its name, the Douglas Fir tree still makes a beautiful wide plank floor with gorgeous characteristics.