When I wrote about foraging for Christmas, there was no mention of Holly (real Holly Ilex) or Ivy because true Holly does not grow in zone 3 and Ivy is not plentiful in this climate. I do have a hardy variety of Ivy, Hedera growing my garden successfully over an old tree stump but it is sheltered and dies back considerably in an extremely cold winter (-35C for a long period of time). Holly Grape or Mahonia is a good substitute for true Holly and it grows naturally in many places on the forest floor.

Cedar too was missing from the list. That is because foraging for cedar in our dry Kootenay climate requires going further afield into wet river valleys or around lakes where there is more water available. There are many varieties of cultivated cedars used for landscaping but the wild Western Red Cedar has the choicest foliage. Trimming our garden cedars is fine for small arrangements but for those long lush feather like branches, Western Red Cedar is one of the best. The bundles for sale at this time of year are Western Red Cedar, Thuja plicata.

This climate zone is rich in conifer, evergreen vegetation but it is limited to those species which like a dry climate so Firs, Spruce, Pines and Juniper are mostly what is available to us. It is interesting that as gardeners many of us want to have some varieties of Cedar in our gardens and yet knowing the provenance of Cedars, damp areas and frequently coastal, they are truly not suitable for our gardens in this climate. The common varieties sold for our zone in nurseries are ‘Emerald’ and ‘Brandon’.  I have struggled with both and I know many people also have. Unless they are well watered consistently, they will turn brown and look unsightly very quickly. It is not just the watering however, water loss in our very hot temperatures is not what cedars like. They prefer a higher humidity. Of the two I have had more success with the Brandon variety, bred at Boughen Nurseries, Valley River, Manitoba.  A few years ago I also planted some small Western Red Cedar cuttings, which were small trees at the time. To my surprise they have taken and although they are living, they will never achieve the grandeur of a Western Red Cedar in a natural setting. I would not want them to either. I planted close together to form a small privacy barrier in the form of a hedge. They will be clipped to shape so long as they survive. I planted them in a trench with some mycorrhiza so water distribution is more even and they would have a good start with some ‘mike’.

There are hundreds of different conifer, evergreens in the world and many of them grow naturally in the Rocky Mountains. Conifers are an order of plants with needle shaped or scale like leaves and true cones, hence the name. Coniferous means, bearing cones.  Most conifers do not lose their leaves in winter, which is why they are commonly called evergreens. Larch is a notable exception.

A large proportion of conifers belong in the Pinaceae family which is why in many places a conifer may simply be identified as a Pine and that would be correct.  However in this Zone 3 Rocky Mountain conifer rich ecosystem we are more familiar with different genus and species. We can break it down further into species, some of which I mentioned in Foraging for Christmas.

In pure botanical form, plants are classified, broken down from higher to lower groupings called taxa:  kingdom, division or phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species of which there may be different varieties or forms. We are most familiar with family, genus and species. plants are mostly identified by genus and species. In human terms, we belong to the genus Homo and species sapiens. Homo sapiens.

The most commonly known genus and species of conifers in our Zone 3 area of British Columbia are. (Zone 3 makes up a good part of the province.)

Fir, such as Douglas Fir, known as other names in different areas: Family Pinaceae, Genus Pseudotsuga, Species menziesii. Douglas Fir used to be classified in the genus Abies but in recent years was given its own genus. Pseudotsuga menziesii is Douglas fir. There are different Firs within the genus Abies and Pseudosuga growing in Zone 3 climate zones. Above; Douglas Fir Pseudostuga menziesii. Others include Silver fir, Subalpine Fir and Grand Fir.

Features include:

• Needle like leaves grow directly from the branch
• Leave circle like scars when removed
• Needles are flat, fairly soft and cannot be rolled between fingers

Spruce. Family Pinaceae. Genus Picea. Engelmann Spruce, Picea species engelmannii is one of the most common. Many will know the Blue Spruce landscaping Conifer, Picea pungens. Above: Picea pungens.

Features include:

• Needle like leaves grow directly from the branch
• Needles are square, sharp and can be rolled between fingers
• Needle leave a woody like scar on the branch from which they fall

Pine  Family Pinaceae. Genus Pinus. Ponderosa Pine which is so familiar to the interior of B.C. is Pinus species ponderosa, Pinus ponderosa. Lodgepole Pine another familiar one is Pinus contorta variety ‘Latifolia’. There are many different pines within the genus Pinus. Above: Ponderosa Pine, Pinus ponderosa. Others include Limber pine and Western White pine.

Features include:

• Needles which are always attached in bundles of 2 or more
• Needles usually longer, not always
• Ponderosa has bundles of 3,(3 syllables)  Lodgepole bundles of 2 (2 syllables)

Cedar Family Pinaceae. Genus Thuja. Western Red Cedar species plicata. Thuja plicata. Above left: Western Red Cedar right; ornamental ‘Brandon.’

Features include:

• Needles flat and scale like

Junipers Family Cupressaceae. Genus Juniperus. Common Juniper Species communis. Juniperus communis. Also Rocky Mountain Juniper, Juniperus scopolorum. There are also many landscaping varieties. Above left: Common Juniper Juniperus communis. right: ornamental Rocky Mountain Juniper Juniperus scopolorum “Blue Arrow’

Features include:

• Stiff, very prickly sharp needles with white underside stripe
• Dense foliage
• Blue berries
• Shrub like

Larch Family Pinaceae, Genus Larix. Western Larch is Larix occidentalis and is easily identified as it loses its needles in winter although is still classified as a conifer. The Kootenays celebrate the Larch annually at the Kimberley Larch Festival as when the Larch needles change colour in October they are spectacular. It’s bare knobby branches are also very attractive. previously pictured in foraging for Christmas.

Less easy to find conifers in this part of the world are the Yews and Hemlocks but both have equally beautiful foliage for decorating and cultivated varieties of Yew are lovely for landscaping.

With all this on offer in our forests, we are spoiled for choice, when it comes to gathering greenery for Christmas decorating.