Watch eastern hemlock Video

The eastern hemlock has a graceful, conical shape with drooping branches. Its short, flat, dark green needles feature two distinctive white stripes underneath. Small, light brown oval cones, about an inch long, hang from its twigs.

Crushed needles surprisingly smell like the poisonous hemlock plant, but this tree is safe!

Its bark was once prized for tanning leather, a super important material for pioneers.

The tiny cones, only about an inch long, are the smallest of any North American hemlock!