Spermatophytes (seed plants): Gymnosperms (non-flowering plants): Conifers: Pinales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Tsuga caroliniana
FAMILY
Pinaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
Learn more about Carolina Hemlock from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Tsuga caroliniana
FAMILY
Pinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 2 (1993)
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 016-03-002:
Tsuga caroliniana FAMILY Pinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Tsuga caroliniana
COMMON NAME:
Carolina Hemlock, Crag Hemlock
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
Manual of the Trees of North America (Exclusive of Mexico) (Sargent, 1905) mtna_i_076
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_t_caroliniana_1
March Rabun County GA
Tallulah Gorge
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_t_caroliniana_12
March Rabun County GA
Tallulah Gorge
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_t_caroliniana_6
March Rabun County GA
Tallulah Gorge
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_tsuga_caroliniana_1
March
)
JK Marlow jkm0404l_09
April Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
Usually in drier rockier sites than T. canadensis, but sometimes mixed, per Weakley's Flora.
)
JK Marlow jkm0305zc_10
May Buncombe County NC
Botanical Gardens at Asheville
)
JK Marlow jkm0506c_11
June Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
)
JK Marlow jkm0407b_23
July Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
Needles flat, extending in all directions rather than in one plane, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
COMPARE
needles of Fir, Hemlock and Spruce
)
JK Marlow jkm140816_698
August Jackson County NC
High Hampton Inn
Seed cone of T. canadensis on left, that of T. caroliniana on right.
)
JK Marlow jkm0509h_33b
September Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
Cones reddish-brown, pendant, to 1-3/8" long, opening widely when mature, per Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance).
COMPARE
cones of Fir, Hemlock and Spruce
)
Ron Lance rwl1562_a
September
Primarily in open forests on ridge tops, rocky bluffs, or gorge walls, per Weakley's Flora.
COMPARE
conifers (not including Pines)
)
Ron Lance rwl1562_b
September
Cones are 1-1.5" long, larger than those of T. canadensis (0.5-0.75" long), per Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007).
)
L.L. (Chick) Gaddy llg_hemlocks
Month Unknown
Left: leaves (needles) of Carolina hemlock. Right: Canada or eastern hemlock, per Alpine South: Plants and Plant Communities of the High Elevations of the Southern Appalachians (Gaddy, 2014).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Tsuga caroliniana
FAMILY
Pinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Tsuga caroliniana
FAMILY
Pinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 2
Tsuga caroliniana
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 016-03-002:
Tsuga caroliniana
FAMILY
Pinaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Tsuga caroliniana
1562
Tree
Perennial
Monoecious
Habitat: Primarily in open forests on ridge tops, rocky bluffs, or gorge walls, generally in drier and rockier sites than T. canadensis, but the two sometimes growing in close proximity or even intermixed in humid gorges; very limited in the western Piedmont, apparently reaching its eastern limit in NC at Hanging Rock State Park, Stokes County, and ranging east to Halifax County in the Piedmont of VA, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Uncommon in NC Mountains (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Evergreen
Needles flattened, flexible, to 3/4" long
Needles not in bundles, arranged on all sides of twig
"FLOWER":
Spring
Unisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Cone
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with Native Plants of the South (Wasowski & Wasowski, 1994, 2020) p040
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p169
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p086
- Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guide to Eastern North America (Williams, 2007) p206
- Landscaping with Native Trees (Sternberg & Wilson, 1995) p249
- Native Trees of the Southeast, An Identification Guide (Kirkman, Brown, & Leopold, 2007) p279
- Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Georgia (Chafin, 2007) p417
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p038
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p02
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p265
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p354
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