FOREST POLICY. 



third from the western two-thirds of the State. The eastern 

 third is a treeless plateau, falling from 6,000 to 4,000 feet, towards 

 the Kansas State line. Little rainfall. The central third of the 

 State is the crest of the continent and is covered with irregular 

 ridges rising up to 14.000 feet elevation. From here the South 

 Platte and Arkansas Rivers run east; the Rio Grande south; the 

 tributaries of the Colorado River (the Green, White, Grand and 

 San Juan Rivers) west; the North Platte river north. 



The western third of the State is a high plateau, intersected 

 by high, detached mountain ranges and peaks. Large parks are 

 characteristic of this mountain section. In winter the snow at 

 Durango, in the southwest, is said to be six feet deep. The rain- 

 fall west of the crest is much greater than east of the crest. 



Forest fires have played more havoc in Colorado than in 

 any other State. 



3. Distribution: The central crest is sparingly timbered 

 with yellow pine, lodgepole pine, limber white pine and foxtail 

 pine. Engelmann's spruce, usually associated with balsam (lasio- 

 carpa), yields the best logs and must be considered the main 

 timber tree of Colorado. It is found at elevations ranging from 

 S.ooo to 12,000 feet. On moist sites, forests are formed by Colo- 

 rado blue spruce and the gray modest variety of Douglas fir, fol- 

 lowed by quaking aspen after devastation. All over the foothills 

 pinon dots the ground (edulis), often replaced by the one-seeded 

 juniper. Along the rivers, a fringe of hardwoods (especially cot- 

 tonwoods, box elder and ash) is found. The best timber is said 

 to stand in the southwest. It seems that the western third of the 

 State has some timber everywhere, although it is not heavily 

 timbered anywhere. Lodgepole pine is the prevailing species in 

 the parks. The Rocky Mountain oak (Quercus undulata) forms 

 brushy thickets on all exposures. Rivers fringed with cotton- 

 wood, box elder, elm and ash. 



4. Forest ownership: Most forest land belongs to the fed- 

 eral government. Lumbermen own 92,000 acres only. 44,000 

 acres of forest are said to be attached to farms. One-seventh of 

 the wooded area is reserved. 



5. Use: The forest is subservient to irrigation and mines. 

 Majority of cut is yellow pine. Total cut in census year was 

 135,000,000 feet b. m., worth $1.627,000. Stumpage of yellow 

 pine on best holdings 8.000 feet. 



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