Southeastern Washington and Adjacent Idaho. 85 



V actinium macrophyllum Fragaria platypetala 



Anemone piperi Linnaea borealis longiflora 



Arnica cordifolia Micromeria chamissonis 



Calamagrostis rubescens Pyrola picta 



Chimaphila umbellata Thalictrum occidentale 



Coptis occid entails Trillium ovatum 



Cytherea bulbosa Vagnera amplexicaulis 

 Fragaria bracteata 



While Opulaster pauciflorus is the most abundant undershrub 

 in the pine consocies, in the Larix- Abies community it remains 

 only as a relict. It is not unusual to find areas of dead nine- 

 bark under a growth of tamarack or white fir. 



Ribes viscosissimum while occurring sparingly in the earlier 

 stages of succession is frequent in these dry fir-tamarack forests 

 but is a more typical undershrub of the more mesophytic fir- 

 tamarack community. In the cedar consociation it gives way to 

 the more mesophytic Ribes lacustre. 



Likewise, Arstostaphylos uva-ursi, common in pine woods, is 

 seldom found here. Linnaea borealis longiflora replaces it, cover- 

 ing large areas with a carpet of trailing stems. The twin-flower 

 is less abundant in the deep shade of well developed fir-tamarack 

 forests and drops out completely in the cedars. 



In well developed forests the white fir not infrequently reaches 

 a diameter of 2.5-3.5 feet, while neighboring tamarack trees reach 

 diameters of similar proportions. Likewise, Douglas fir fre- 

 quently attains a diameter of 3 feet, a relatively small tree com- 

 pared with the dimensions it reaches in the humid Washington 

 region west of the Cascades. Under the closed canopy of such a 

 forest, shrubs are almost excluded and herbaceous plants are not 

 abundant. The light values may drop to an intensity of only o.oi 

 or even 0.007. 



In more open places a poorly developed shrubby layer may 

 overtop an upper layer of herbaceous plants, which like the former 

 is not well developed. Indeed, both may be absent and then a 

 scattered growth of low-growing herbs with a few fungi and 

 mosses may partially cover the ground. The sparse growth of. 



85 



