Three species, one name.
Understanding the differences makes a visit to any redwood place much richer. Giant sequoia, coast redwood, and dawn redwood — here is what makes each one distinctive, how to identify them, and the names you'll encounter.
Giant Sequoia
Sequoiadendron giganteumThe largest tree by volume on Earth. A mature giant sequoia can hold enough wood to fill a house to the roof. Native to the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada in California, typically at elevations of 1,500–2,500 metres.
In Britain, most giant sequoias were planted in the 1850s and 1860s, when the species was newly discovered and still causing a sensation. Many of those Victorian-era trees are still standing.
Field identification
- Bark
- Very thick, fibrous, reddish-brown. Distinctively spongy to the touch.
- Foliage
- Blue-green, scale-like (awl-shaped), arranged spirally on the branches.
- Silhouette
- Conical when young, becoming irregular with age. Usually a single massive trunk.
- Also known as
- Wellingtonia, Sierra redwood, big tree.
Coast Redwood
Sequoia sempervirensThe world's tallest tree species. Coast redwoods in California regularly exceed 100 metres. Native to the fog belt along the Pacific coast.
Coast redwoods thrive in high humidity and high rainfall — conditions that parts of western Britain can match closely. They grow faster than giant sequoias in the UK, and regenerate from the base if cut.
Field identification
- Bark
- Reddish-brown and fibrous, thinner than giant sequoia.
- Foliage
- Flat, needle-like leaves arranged in two ranks on spreading branchlets.
- Silhouette
- Often tall and narrow, with drooping branches. Can produce multiple stems.
- Also known as
- Coast redwood, California redwood.
Dawn Redwood
Metasequoia glyptostroboidesThe dawn redwood is deciduous — it loses its needles in winter — and was known only from fossils until 1941, when a living population was discovered in a remote valley in Sichuan, China.
Dawn redwoods in Britain are generally younger than the giant sequoias and coast redwoods (most were planted post-1950), but they grow quickly and are increasingly common.
Field identification
- Bark
- Reddish-brown, fibrous. The base often has buttress-like fluting.
- Foliage
- Soft, feathery needles arranged in opposite pairs. Turns orange-brown in autumn.
- Silhouette
- Upright, with a distinctive conical shape. Much narrower than the others.
- Also known as
- Water fir.
Common confusion points
Giant sequoia vs coast redwood
Both have reddish, fibrous bark. Giant sequoia bark is generally thicker and more prominently ridged. Coast redwood bark is thinner and tends to have longer, parallel furrows. If in doubt, check the foliage: scale-like (giant sequoia) vs needle-like (coast redwood).
Dawn redwood vs coast redwood
Both have flat, feathery foliage that can look similar in summer. Dawn redwood needles are arranged in opposite pairs; coast redwood needles alternate. Dawn redwood is also deciduous — if the tree is bare in winter, it's almost certainly dawn redwood.