THE REDWOODS 



327 



veras Grove were estimated to contain an average of 

 81,386 board feet each, the largest tree being estimated to 

 contain nearly 120,000 board feet. Unverified estimates 

 of trees that would yield four times this amount of lum- 

 ber are reported. The weight of the largest Bigtree was 

 estimated to be in excess of 1,000 tons. 



The secret of the long life of the Bigtree is its free- 

 dom from destructive fungus and insect enemies. Fire 

 may gradually burn away 

 the wood at the base of the 

 trunks if it finds an open- 

 ing in the thick bark. 

 Lightning frequently shat- 

 ters the tall tops, but the 

 Bigtree has power above all 

 other trees to recover from 

 such injuries it may receive. 

 Occasionally the roots are 

 undermined and the set- 

 tling of the huge trunks 

 may cause the tree to be 

 overthrown, but apparently 

 most failures are due to the 

 weight of the enormous 

 limbs which grow on the 

 sides where light is most 

 abundant and which may 

 gradually cause the trunk 

 to lean and finally fall. The 

 Bigtree has been widely 

 planted in Europe and 

 grows well. It is adapted 

 to conditions in the Eastern 

 United States, as is shown 

 by healthy specimens of 

 good proportions which 

 are growing in Pennsyl- 

 vania and New York. 

 Great care in selecting the 

 proper soil is undoubtedly 

 necessary if this tree is to 

 be grown successfully. 



The redwood produces 

 large quantities of seed but 

 only one out of four or 

 five is perfect and capable 

 of producing a seedling; 

 for this reason it is not 

 common to find dense 

 stands of young redwood 

 seedlings, and most of the 

 new growth of redwood is 

 from sprouts from the 

 stumps or roots. Some 

 species of pine produce 

 small sprouts from the 

 stumps after the trees are 

 felled, but the redwood is 

 the only cone-bearing tree 

 that depends on this un- 



Even with such a comparison as 

 difficult for those who have 

 realize how awe-inspiring and 



usual power as the principal means of perpetuating itself 

 in the forest. Redwood sprouts grow very rapidly and 

 may develop in 30 years into trees 16 inches in diameter, 

 80 feet high, and yield 2,000 board feet per acre. Seed- 

 lings grow more slowly than sprouts and need a greater 

 amount of sunlight. 



The sprouts from the redwood stumps may live in 

 dense shade for a century, growing slowly, and then 



when the trees above them 

 are removed, spring into 

 vigorous growth. The red- 

 wood requires a moist cli- 

 mate for its growth. Few 

 trees grow outside the re- 

 gion where sea fogs are 

 frequent and heavy, and in 

 such cases the trees are 

 small and scattered. In the 

 region in which it grows 

 the temperature rarely falls 

 lower than 15 F. or rises 

 above 100 F., with a rain- 

 fall of 20 to 60 inches. 

 About 50 square miles of 

 forest is composed almost 

 entirely of redwood trees. 

 On about 1,800 square 

 miles the redwood com- 

 prises half to three-quar- 

 ters of the stand, the other 

 species being principally 

 Douglas fir with some tan- 

 bark oak on the upper 

 slopes, and with western 

 hemlock and western red 

 cedar on the lower slopes. 



The redwood reaches its 

 best development on moist, 

 sandy soils, and does not 

 grow in extremely wet or 

 boggy situations. Exposed 

 to the winds on dry soils or 

 steep slopes the trees are 

 smaller and less numerous, 

 Douglas fir quickly taking 

 the place of the redwood. 

 The yield of merchantable 

 lumber from a redwood 

 forest is very large. Al- 

 though 400,000 board feet 

 per acre is an exceptional 

 yield, a cut of over 1,000,- 

 000 feet per acre is on rec- 

 ord. A single tree is said, 

 on good authority, to have 

 cut logs that scaled a total 

 of 66,500 feet board meas- 

 ure. The ordinary acre 

 yield is from 10,000 to 

 75,000 board feet. 



IN CALIFORNIA REDWOOD PARK 



is shown in this photograph it is 

 not actually seen the big trees to 

 impressive they are. 



