List of coniferous plants of Montana

Rocky mountain juniper

There are at least 20 species of Gymnosperms or Coniferous plants in Montana.^[1]

The conifers, division Pinophyta, also known as division Coniferophyta or Coniferae, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. Pinophytes are gymnosperms. They are cone-bearing seed plants with vascular tissue; all extant conifers are woody plants, the great majority being trees with just a few being shrubs. Typical examples of conifers include cedars, Douglas firs, cypresses, firs, junipers, kauris, larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews.^[2] The division contains approximately eight families, 68 genera, and 630 living species.^[3][4]

The Ponderosa pine, a conifer, is the Montana State Tree.^[5]

Cedars and junipers

Order: Pinales, Family: Cupressaceae

• Common juniper, Juniperus communis^[6]
• Creeping juniper, Juniperus horizontalis^[7]
• Rocky mountain juniper, Juniperus scopulorum^[8]
• Utah juniper, Juniperus osteosperma^[9]
• Western redcedar, Thuja plicata^[10]

Fir, hemlock, larch, pine, and spruce

Whitebark pine

Order: Pinales, Family: Pinaceae

• Alpine larch, Larix lyallii^[11]
• Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii^[12]
• Engelmann spruce, Picea engelmannii^[13]
• Grand fir, Abies grandis^[14]
• Limber pine, Pinus flexilis^[15]
• Lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta^[16]
• Mountain hemlock, Tsuga mertensiana^[17]
• Ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa^[18]
• Subalpine fir, Abies lasiocarpa^[19]
• Western hemlock, Tsuga heterophylla^[20]
• Western larch, Larix occidentalis^[21]
• Western white pine, Pinus monticola^[22]
• White spruce, Picea glauca^[23]
• Whitebark pine, Pinus albicaulis^[24]

Yew

Order: Pinales, Family: Taxaceae

• Pacific yew, Taxus brevifolia^[25]

Further reading

• Rydberg, Per Axel PhD (1900). Catalogue of the flora of Montana and the Yellowstone National Park (PDF). New York: New York Botanical Garden.
• Booth, W.E. (1950). Flora of Montana, Part I Conifers and Monocots. Bozeman, Montana: The Research Foundation at Montana State College.
• Kavanaugh, James (2005). Montana Trees & Wildflowers: An Introduction to Familiar Species. Waterford Press. ISBN 1-58355-293-6.
• Little, E.L. Jr. (1979). Checklist of United States trees (native and naturalized). Agriculture Handbook No. 541. Washington, D.C: U.S. Forest Service.
• Petrides, George A. (1992). A Field Guide to Western Trees. Western United States and Canada. Roger Tory Peterson Field Guides 50th Anniversary Edition. Norwalk, CT: Easton Press.

See also

• Ecology of the Rocky Mountains
• Lichens of Montana
• Monocotyledons of Montana

Notes

1. "Montana Field Guide-Conifers". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
2. Campbell, Reece, "Phylum Coniferophyta."Biology. 7th. 2005. Print. P.595
3. Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual checklist - Conifer database Archived 2009-01-15 at the Wayback Machine
4. Lott, J.; Liu, J.; Pennell, K.; Lesage, A.; West, M. (2002). "Iron-rich particles and globoids in embryos of seeds from phyla Coniferophyta, Cycadophyta, Gnetophyta, and Ginkgophyta: characteristics of early seed plants". Canadian Journal of Botany. 80 (9): 954–961. doi:10.1139/b02-083.
5. "Montana State Symbols". Retrieved 2010-12-06.
6. "Montana Field Guide-Common Juniper". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
7. "Montana Field Guide-Creeping Juniper". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
8. "Montana Field Guide-Rocky Mountain Juniper". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
9. "Montana Field Guide-Utah Juniper". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
10. "Montana Field Guide-Western Redcedar". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
11. "Montana Field Guide-Alpine Larch". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
12. "Montana Field Guide-Douglas Fir". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
13. "Montana Field Guide-Engelmann Spruce". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
14. "Montana Field Guide-Grand Fir". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
15. "Montana Field Guide-Limber Pine". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
16. "Montana Field Guide-Lodgepole Pine". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
17. "Montana Field Guide-Mountain Hemlock". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
18. "Montana Field Guide-Ponderosa Pine". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
19. "Montana Field Guide-Subalpine Fir". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
20. "Montana Field Guide-Western Hemlock". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
21. "Montana Field Guide-Western Larch". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
22. "Montana Field Guide-Western White Pine". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
23. "Montana Field Guide-White Spruce". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
24. "Montana Field Guide-Whitebark Pine". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
25. "Montana Field Guide-Pacific Yew". Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Retrieved 2010-12-06.