Present Condition of Timbered Areas 
HE 9,336,000 acres of uncleared forest land 
in the Upper Peninsula supports a forest 
growth that only patchily represents the 
original (see colored map at end of report). As 
nearly as can be estimated, the original forests 
consisted of four major types in about the following 
proportions: 
Acres 
Lard WOOGS Sey scete tances. sa) Herel csevaieby lens 4,750,000 
SPEUCE= line genome Sebo sche, ce pereuetney seca teg 2,500,000 
eA eCeaaty tl eae ieee a StU Er tael A 1,600,000 
(Copsbbise BWI Ne coadoaenadeoes ones 1,400,000 
Mota my nwtieyslveneiage ccs sy oust hs 10,250,000 
The hardwood forests were mixtures of sugar 
maple, hemlock, yellow birch, elm, basswood, and 
beech. Islands of white pine occurred in many 
localities. Volumes ranged from 5 to 30 M board 
ee 
Ke 
feet per acre, the heavier stands including a large 
proportion of the softwood species. 
The spruce-fir forests, which occupied rock 
outcrops adjacent to the Great Lakes and swamp 
margins and other poorly drained lands in the 
interior, were a conglomeration of hardwoods and 
softwoods in which balsam fir, white spruce, white- 
cedar, soft maple, paper birch, and various poplars 
were most prominent. Judging by the samples of 
old growth that remain, white-cedar, white spruce, 
and balsam fir made up a little more than half of 
the total volume; about one-sixth consisted of 
hemlock, tamarack, and pine; and the remaining 
one-third of hardwoods, such as yellow birch, soft 
maple, American elm, and various species of 
poplar. 
Pine forests held most of the sandy areas. White 
pine, red pine, and jack pine were present in the 
Ficure 5.—Virgin stand of northern hardwoods—sugar mafle, yellow birch, hemlock, and elm. 
8 
