sitka spruce: uses, growth, management. 
29 
purposes, that the tree has habits of growth and hardiness that rec- 
ommend it as a tree for the forester to favor and propagate for the 
forests of the future. It should be the objective, therefore, of tim- 
bermen and foresters so to manage spruce lands that they may be- 
come reforested through natural seeding, and that the new crop may 
contain a desirable admixture of Sitka spruce wherever this species 
will thrive. 
Much of the land upon which the virgin forests of spruce occur 
has agricultural value and will be put to that use after the removal 
of the timber. On such lands no effort need be made by the forester 
or lumberman to promote a new crop to take the place of the one 
removed, but on all other lands this should be done. 
The rapid extension of logging operations in this type makes very 
timely a discussion of methods of forest management which will in- 
sure continuous crops of timber. 
OWNERSHIP. 
The present ownership of the commercial Sitka spruce is shown in 
Table 10. 
Table 10. — Ownership of Sitka spruce timber, by classes of owners, in millions 
of feet, board measure. 
Ownership. 
Wash- 
ington. 
Oregon. 
Cali- 
fornia. 
Alaska. 
British 
Co- 
lumbia. 
Federal ' 
1,550 
720 
4,205 
300 
4,074 
( 2 ) 
( 2 ) 
187 
15, 000- 
18, 000 
• 
State 
1,423 
Private 
(") 
12,742 
Total 
6,475 
4,374 
187 
15,000- 
18,000 
14, 165 
Including Indian reservation. 
* Negligible amount. 
From the above it is seen that in Alaska the Sitka spruce forests 
are practically all under Federal control, but that in Washington, 
Oregon, and California the bulk of this timber is in private owner- 
ship. The perpetuation of forests of Sitka spruce and their future 
welfare are largely in the hands of private owners and not under 
the jurisdiction of public agencies of government. Many of the hold- 
ings have been consolidated into units of 1,000 to 30,000 acres, though 
small properties are not uncommon. The State lands of Washington 
are in various-sized blocks, which in the aggregate now amount to 
about 10,000 acres. The Sitka spruce timberlands under Federal 
control in Washington lie chiefly in the Olympic National Forest and 
