Fraser fir is a high-altitude tree and related to the northern Balsam fir. Abies fraseri occupies a very restricted native range in higher locations in the southern Appalachian mountains. Interestingly, this tree is commonly planted at lower elevations for ornamental and Christmas tree purposes and may lead to its ultimate salvation. Acid rain and the woolly adelgid are taking a direct and high toll on naturally occurring stands of Fraser fir.
Images of Fraser Fir
Photos Use by Permission - Bill Cook, ForestryImages.org
Forestryimages.org provides several images of parts of the Fraser fir. The tree is a conifer and the lineal taxonomy is Pinopsida > Pinales > Pinaceae > Abies fraseri (Pursh) Poir. Frasier fir is also commonly called balsam fir, eastern fir, fraser balsam fir, southern balsam, southern fir.
The Range of Fraser Fir
USFS/Little
Fraser fir has a unique distribution, restricted to high elevations in the southern Appalachian Mountains of southwestern Virginia, western North Carolina, and eastern Tennessee. It is the only fir endemic to the southern Appalachian Mountains. The largest tree on record measures almost 86 cm (34 in) in d.b.h., 26.5 m (87 ft) tall, and has a crown spread of 15.8 m (52 ft).
Fraser Fir at Conifers.org
Conifers.org Remarks:"Fraser fir has been decimated in many areas by the attacks of an introduced insect pest, the balsam wooly adelgid. First introduced in New England in 1908, the adelgid reached Mt. Mitchell (highest point in the eastern United States and formerly home to a splendid Abies fraseri - Picea rubra forest) in 1957 and has since killed at least 80% of the mature Fraser firs on the mountain."
"The species is named for its discoverer, John Fraser (1750-1811), an ardent collector of North American plants."
