386 



Yearbook of Agriculture 1949 



Worthy of particular mention from 

 the standpoint of the forests that they 

 include are the Olympic National 

 Park, in Washington, the Yosemite 

 and Sequoia National Parks, in Cali- 

 fornia, and the Great Smoky Moun- 

 tains National Park, in North Carolina 

 and Tennessee. 



The Olympic National Park, in the 

 lower valleys of its western slopes, con- 

 tains extensive areas of the dense con- 

 iferous forest which has resulted from 

 the heavy rainfall that blankets the 

 coastal portions of the Pacific North- 

 west. Here Douglas-fir, western hem- 

 lock, western redcedar, Sitka spruce, 

 and the true firs grow densely and to 

 great size. An understory of maples, 

 ferns, and other plants combine with 

 the heavy stands of conifers to produce 

 an almost junglelike density. 



The Yosemite and Sequoia National 

 Parks in the Sierra Nevada region of 

 California contain substantial acreages 

 of virgin conifer forests, including the 

 sugar pine, ponderosa pine, incense- 

 cedar, and white fir. They (especially 

 Sequoia National Park) include also 

 the famed groves of giant sequoias. 

 These trees, the remnants of a once 

 widespread genus, are native to only 

 a narrow belt along the western slope 

 of the central and southern Sierra 

 Nevada. Individual specimens grow to 

 majestic size and great age, and the 

 parks contain several thousand that 

 are more than 10 feet in diameter and 

 250 feet in height. 



The Great Smoky Mountains Na- 

 tional Park in the southern Appala- 

 chian Mountains includes one of the 

 few remaining examples of the orig- 

 inal forest of the Eastern States. Ap- 

 proximately 40 percent of its nearly 

 half million acres is in the original 

 forested condition. Higher elevations 

 bear unusually dense forests of spruce, 

 balsam, and some hemlock, while the 

 intermediate slopes are covered with 

 hardwoods characteristic of the Ap- 

 palachian region. In this park are 

 found 130 or more native tree species, 

 some of which grow to record size. 



By law, national parks and monu- 



ments are established for the benefit 

 and enjoyment of the people and must 

 be protected and retained in as nearly 

 their natural conditions as possible. 

 Forestry in the national parks is there- 

 fore primarily protective; its chief 

 objective is to avoid or minimize de- 

 struction of the forest by fire, insects, 

 disease, and unwise use by man. Com- 

 mercial use, such as lumbering, is pro- 

 hibited, and cutting of trees is permitted 

 only as a method of fighting forest pests 

 or diseases, or of reducing fire hazards. 

 To combat fire, the National Park 

 Service has developed a comprehensive 

 fire-control organization, centering 

 about the administrative personnel in 

 the parks and monuments. Coopera- 

 tion with agencies protecting adjoin- 

 ing lands, whether public or private, is 

 actively promoted. The National Park 

 Service and the Bureaus of Entomology 

 and Plant Quarantine and of Plant 

 Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engi- 

 neering of the Department of Agricul- 

 ture cooperate in the detection and 

 control of insect or disease epidemics, 

 such as bark beetle infestations and the 

 white pine blister rust, which, next to 

 fire, are the greatest enemies of the 

 forests in the parks and monuments. 

 All forestry work, including fire con- 

 trol, is headed by the chief forester in 

 the office of the Director of the Na- 

 tional Park Service. Foresters of the 

 four administrative regions of the Park 

 Service give on-the-ground supervision 

 and technical advice. 



Trees contribute to the inspirational 

 and scientific values of the national 

 parks and monuments in many ways. 

 They form a pleasing framework for 

 the mountains, lakes, and geological 

 features, provide the beauty and the 

 outdoor environment for camping, pic- 

 nicking, hiking, and skiing, offer a 

 habitat for wildlife, protect the soil in 

 which they grow, and help to regulate 

 the flow of streams. They offer oppor- 

 tunities for study of the growth and 

 maintenance of forests under natural 

 conditions and, where virgin forests 

 have been included, afford examples 

 of some of the original forest types 



