clear cutting of old-growth stands progresses, large areas of slash and soil sur- 

 face are exposed to drying conditions. Planning for adequate fire protection will 

 require research on the amounts and types of fuel, how they respond to drying 

 factors, and how fire behaves in these fuels. 



The most recent epidemic of black-headed budworm and hemlock sawfly swept 

 through all of coastal Alaska before subsiding in 1955. The net loss of hemlock 

 was 268 million board feet. Outbreaks of other insects, such as the Sitka 

 spruce beetle, spruce engraver beetle, Alaska spruce beetle, and spear-marked 

 black moth have occurred over areas ranging from several thousand to many 

 millions of acres. The amount of damage is unknown in many cases, particularly 

 in the Interior forests. It is evident, however, that losses must bs minimized 

 before the forest manager will have a stable basis for planning timber resource 

 utilization. Information on biology, ecology, and control of forest insects in 

 Alaska is lacking in some cases and inadequate in others. 



Young even-aged stands in Southeast Alaska have about twice the volume of wood 

 per acre as old-growth stands. Evenr-aged stands are the desired forest but at 

 present they make up only 10 percent of the commercial forest area. Conver- 

 sion to even-aged stands is the foreinost silvicultural task now. If a scientific 

 basis for managing the new forest is to be available when utilization of even- 

 aged stands begins, the research background will have to begin in the Sixties. 



These are some of the high spots in forest research needs in Alaska but it is by 

 no means a complete list. Forest research in Alaska is just beginning, so it 

 follows that much research remains to be accomplished. 



The pages that follow summarize progress on some of the research projects 

 active during the past two years. Publications issued during 1958 and 1959 are 

 included in the lists on pages 21 - 30. Copies of publications and additional in- 

 formation on research projects may be obtained from the Alaska Forest 

 Research Center, Box 740, Juneau, Alaska. 



THE FOREST SURVEY 



When the Forest Survey of Alaska began in 1954, it was believed that 

 general statistics useful in regional and national planning were all that was 

 needed. However, a growing demand for timber along the coastal region of 

 Alaska soon showed the need for local data to be used in preparing timber sales 

 and forest management plans. Region 10 of the U. S. Forest Service, and the 

 Alaska Forest Research Center, in charge of the Forest Survey activity, 

 joined forces to meet national, regional, and local needs in one survey of the 

 coastal forest areas. The survey of the Interior forests, however, is an exten- 

 sive type survey to meet minimum needs and standards. 



