# Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis)

> A dense, graceful pyramidal evergreen with a drooping leader, pendulous branch tips, tiny flat needles with two white bands beneath and small hanging cones. It is the only conifer of its region that thrives in deep shade and takes shearing well, so it is used for hedges and screens on the shady side of a property. Hemlock woolly adelgid has killed vast wild stands and must be managed on planted trees.

Source: https://treerm.org/trees/tsuga-canadensis · Updated 2026-11-08 · License CC BY 4.0

## Facts

- Also called: Canada hemlock, Canadian hemlock
- Family: Pinaceae
- Type: Conifer
- Mature height: 18 m; spread 9 m
- Growth: Medium growth; lives about 400 years
- USDA hardiness zones: 3 to 7
- Light: Sun or part shade
- Water: Moderate water
- Soil: Cool, consistently moist, well-drained acidic loam; dislikes very wet or very dry soil
- Native range: Northeastern Minnesota and Wisconsin east through Ontario and Quebec to Nova Scotia, and south through New England and New York along the Appalachians to northern Georgia and Alabama.

**Benefits:** Wildlife, Birds, Long lived, Windbreak

**Good for:** Screening, Yard shade, parks, Hedgerow

**Watch out for:** Pest prone

## Care

Transplants well; plant in a cool, sheltered spot out of hot afternoon sun and winter wind and keep the soil moist, since it will not tolerate drought. Shear in early summer if hedging. Inspect for hemlock woolly adelgid (white cottony tufts under twigs), which is treatable with horticultural oil or systemic insecticide; also elongate hemlock scale and spider mites.

## Where it stands

- **Native:** Canada (Native to Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.); United States (Native from Minnesota and Wisconsin east to Maine and south along the Appalachians to Georgia and Alabama (more than 15 states).)
- **Recommended:** Washington, DC, United States (On the Casey Trees Tree Rebate eligible species list)

## Sources

- https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/tsuga-canadensis/
- https://mortonarb.org/plant-and-protect/trees-and-plants/eastern-hemlock/
- https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/TSCA
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsuga_canadensis