THE FORESTS OF ALASKA 



25 



HEAVY TIMBER IN THE TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST 



The heaviest stands of timber in the Tongass National Forest occur on the flats, benches, and protected slopes. The trees reach, however, an 

 astonishingly good development on beds of boulders and stones where the soil is meager. On the better and deeper soils, the Sitka spruce 

 often occurs to the exclusion of other species and in such locations very largely predominates in the stand. Chief Forester Graves in the 

 foreground. 



bone of the larger islands rise above timberline, but many 

 oi the islands and peninsulas of the mainland have a 

 relatively low elevation and are wooded to the top. But 

 the forests, as viewed from the water, give little idea 

 of their real character. Seen from a distance, they may 

 appear unimpressive. If, however, one goes back into 

 the woods, landing, for example, at the head of one of 

 the innumerable bays, he finds himself in a great timber 

 forest, with the characteristics and many of the same 

 species found in the forests of the coast of Washington. 

 It is in reality in the same forest region as western 

 Washington and British Columbia, for southeastern 

 Alaska, under the influence of favorable ocean currents, 

 is characterized by a very equable climate, a relatively 

 long growing season, and a large amount of moisture. 

 These are the same climatic conditions that create the 

 great forests of the northwest coast of the States. There 

 is on the coast of Alaska, as farther south, the same 

 response of vegetation to climate and a forest composed 



of trees of large size and heavy yield, and having the 

 same general form, character of reproduction and of life 

 development. 



We may speak of the northern coast forests of the 

 States as representing the center of best development 

 of the prevailing forest type, and the Alaskan coast 

 forests as its northern extension. As one moves from the 

 center or optimum region of development of a forest 

 type, the number of species drops off and the trees do not 

 reach as great a size and yield. This is true of Alaska. 

 One conspicuous species of the Washington and Oregon 

 coast is absent, the Douglas fir, as well as a number of 

 the less important species. The forest is made up chiefly 

 of Sitka spruce, western hemlock, and red and yellow 

 cedar, with a number of other species so scattered or so 

 inferior as to be of no economic importance. The trees 

 are also smaller, for in Alaska the spruce reaches a maxi- 

 mum diameter of about 8 feet and a height of over 200 

 feet, while in the States one finds spruce more than 12 



