THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST 63 



are not unusual and the trees are very large. It is also com- 

 mon,, although of small size,, in swamps. 



This spruce reproduces readily in openings, whether made 

 by fire or cutting. Unthrifty specimens may be found under 

 shade, but considerable light is necessary for successful de- 

 velopment. Even then, height growth in youth averages 

 slower than that of fir or hemlock. The leader shoot is likely 

 to die, so that hardly more than 25 per cent of the young 

 trees establish a regular form of growth before a height of 

 20 or 30 feet is reached. After this stage spruce grows uni- 

 formly and rapidly, still somewhat slower than fir in height 

 but exceeding it in diameter. The branches are slow to die, 

 however, so that the tree remains bushy for most of its 

 length until it reaches 60 or 80 feet in height, and even after- 

 ward a dense stand is required to clear it. In many pure 

 spruce forests the larger trees have been able to withstand 

 the pruning influences and remain limby, while the smaller 

 ones, being pushed in height growth to reach sufficient light 

 for survival, have cleared themselves with remarkable 

 rapidity. 



The natural occurrence of Sitka spruce, except in Alaska, 

 is probably limited chiefly to situations where it escapes com- 

 petition, in youth at least, with the more hardy and rapid- 

 growing species. It has the greatest advantage over these on 

 river bottoms and flats where there is a dense growth of 

 deciduous brush and where the soil is very wet in spring. In 

 considering it as a possible second crop, the same competition 

 must be remembered. Whether seeding is natural or arti- 

 ficial, the extent to which it will hold its own with any consid- 

 erable quantity of other species is doubtful. If such are pres- 

 ent and the situation is adapted to them, any expensive effort 

 to get spruce merely by modifying methods of logging or 

 handling the slash is certainly likely to be disappointing. 

 Under the conditions mentioned as peculiarly favorable for 

 spruce, gradual natural restocking may be expected if some 

 seed supply is preserved, but since the growth is rather slow 

 and a thin stand will remain limby, it may pay to hasten 



