THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST 51 



from assuming the branchy form of trees which receive too 

 much side light. The fire danger is much reduced by result- 

 ant shading of the ground and slightly by the lesser- cover of 

 debris. In short, he makes the most economical itse of the 

 ground, and the capital represented by the trees he spares 

 is well invested. 



To sum up, hemlock lends itself to almost every form, of 

 management. Determination as to which is most advisable 

 is governed by its extremely variable manner of occurrence 

 and by the local promise offered by associate species. The 

 foregoing discussion can only serye as suggestive when con- 

 sidering given conditions. 



WESTERN CEDAR (Thuya plicata) 



Except for small swamp and river bottom areas, where the 

 land is likely to be more valuable for agriculture than for 

 forest culture, pure cedar stands are not common. Therefore 

 it is as a component of mixed stands that cedar is likely to be- 

 come a problem in conservative management. To some ex- 

 tent it presents a peculiar question by being taken out alone 

 for special purposes, such as poles and bolts, independent of 

 ordinary logging of sawtimber. 



Western cedar is a typically shade-bearing tree and also en- 

 dures much ground moisture. Its occurrence as an under 

 story and in swamps does not indicate that it always requires 

 such conditions, however, but more often means merely that 

 they protected it from competition or from destruction by fire. 

 Charred remains of very large, fine cedar are often found on 

 comparatively dry slopes where fire has resulted in complete 

 occupation by fir at present. Cedar's failure to reappear 

 there after removal is probably because its thin bark arid 

 shallow roots allowed its destruction by a fire which was sur- 

 vived by some better protected fir seed trees. Nevertheless, 

 cedar must be classified as a moisture-loving species and occu- 

 pies dry soils only in coast or mountain localities where there 

 is a compensating heavy rainfall. 



