480 ABIETIA DOUGLASIL 



latitude of the region ; on the Califomiaii Sierras it seldom ascends 

 higher than 5,500 feet above the level of the ocean ; in northern 

 Arizona it forms forests between 8,000 and 9,000 feet elevation and 

 in Colorado up to 11,000 feet. 



The foregoing outline of the distribution of the Douglas Fir brings 

 out prominently the following remarkable facts : it is the most widely 

 distributed not only of all American Firs but of all American trees- 

 it is spread over thirty-two degrees of latitude, a meridional range 

 greater than that of any other coniferous tree excepting perhaps the 

 common Juniper ; it must thence possess a constitution that " enables 

 it to endure the fierce gales and long winters of the north and the 

 nearly perpetual sunshine of the Mexican Cordilleras ; to thrive in the 

 rain and fog which sweep almost continuously along the Pacific coast 

 range, and on the arid mountain slopes of the interior, where for 

 months every year, rain never falls."*" The Douglas Fir is not only 

 one of the most interesting, but it is also one of the most valuable 

 of trees ; its size, its capacity of adapting itself to new surroundings 

 and the excellence of its timber, all contribute to make it one of the 

 most important inhabitants of the forests of western America. It attains 

 its greatest development in the humid lowlands of western Washington 

 and Oregon, especially around Puget Sound and on the western slopes 

 of the Sierra Nevada where the precipitation from the Pacific Ocean 

 is greatest ; in these regions it often attains a height of 300 feet 

 with a trunk 9 to 12 feet in diameter, f When standing alone on the 

 low damp plains as it often does on the steep slopes of the mountain 

 canons, its lofty trunk is frequently feathered with branches from the 

 ground upwards ; in the bottom lauds of the Columbia basin, the trees 

 often stand so close together that the traveller can with difficulty 

 push his way between the lofty trunks free of branches for upwards 

 of 200 feet and supporting a canopy of foliage so dense that the 

 sun's rays never pierce it.J While thus attaining gigantic proportions 

 in the plains, it also flourishes high up on the mountains of California 

 at an altitude of 5,000 to 6,000 feet, and in Colorado still higher, but 

 at these elevations it is always a much smaller tree. 



Over so extensive a region and under so many diverse circumstances 

 of climate and environment, sometimes of the most opposite description, 

 the wood of the Douglas Fir is found to vary much in quality and 

 colour ; some trees produce yellow, others light red wood ; the yellow 

 is the finer and the red the coarser-grained wood, but the difference 

 seems to be largely due to the age of the tree. In southern British 

 Columbia, Washington and Oregon, Douglas Fir timber is used for all 

 kinds of construction, house-building, spars and masts for ships, and 

 a}so for fuel. The wood of the variety macrocarpa is heavy, hard, 

 strong and durable; it is largely used for fuel. 



* Silva of North America, XII. p. 91. 



f The British public have had for many years past an opportunit}- of forming an idea 

 of the stupendous dimensions attained by this tree. In the Royal Gardens at Kew is 

 erected a flagstaff brought from Vancouver Island ; it consists of a single piece 159 feet in 

 length, 22 inches in diameter at the base tapering to 8 inches at the summit ; it weighs 

 three tons and contains 157 cubic feet of timber. The tree from which this flagstaff was 

 made was two hundred and fifty years old, as indicated by its concentric rings. 



+ Garden and Forest, IV. p. 205. 



Silva of North America, XII. pp. 90, 94. 



