Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - redwood

 noun  Date: circa 1585  1. any of various woods (as brazilwood) yielding a red dye  2. a tree that yields a red dyewood or produces red or reddish wood  3.  a. a very tall coniferous tree (Sequoia sempervirens) of the bald cypress family that grows chiefly in coastal California, sometimes reaches a height of 360 feet (110 meters), and is a commercially important timber tree — called also coast ~ — see cone illustration  b. its brownish-red durable wood