Western hemlock Tsuga heterophylla

Introduced to Britain in the 19th century by legendary plant hunter David Douglas, the Western hemlock is one of the country's most commonly found conifers. Both commercially and ornamentally popular, it is not related to the highly toxic herb of the same name.

In 1824, a Scottish plant hunter by the name of David Douglas led an expedition to the Pacific North West. Over the next few years, Douglas introduced around than 240 plant species to Britain and in so doing changed the country's landscape and timber industry forever. Among his more notable introductions were the Douglas fir, the sitka spruce, the Monterey pine and the western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla).

Douglas would probably have continued to find new trees in North America but for his mysterious and untimely death at the age of just 35 when he fell into a pit trap in Hawaii and was apparently crushed by a bull. However, the rumour among the local residents was that an escaped convict who had provided Douglas with breakfast on the morning of his death, and then killed him for a bag of gold before disappearing.

The western hemlock tree is so named for the similarity of its scent to the herb hemlock. Known for being poisonous, the herb is not related to the conifer found by Douglas.

In its native habitat, Tsuga heterophylla can grow to 80m (250ft) in height but in Britain it rarely tops half that height. However, it has proven a fine addition to the timber industry, not least because of the amount of shade it can tolerate while continuing to flourish. Its wood is often used for roofing and boxes as it holds nails without splitting.