On 03/19/2017 03:59 PM, wrote:
Douglas Fir is WAY too valuable to be used for residential framing,
even here in Canada./ What we buy is labled as "SPF" = meaning mixed
softwood - loosely spruce, pine and fir - but the fir is seldom
"douglas Fir" (more likely Balsam in the east and Alpine in the west)
and there is sometimes a bit of tamarac and hemlock mixed in.

http://americansoftwoods.com/species/

"Douglas Fir is North America’s most plentiful softwood species,
accounting for one fifth of the continent’s total softwood reserves.
Because Douglas Fir and Larch share nearly identical structural
characteristics and physical working properties, the two are
interchangeable in dimension lumber but are often kept separate in
appearance grade lumber. The Douglas Fir-Larch species group is
dimensionally stable and universally recognized for its superior
strength-to-weight ratio."

Around here, if it isn't a Doug Fir, it's a Ponderosa Pine. Alpine Fir
tends to be, well, alpine, and not easy to get to. Douglas Fir, btw,
isn't a fir. There's also some larch and small stands of cedar that were
overlooked or too hard to harvest.