oct. x, 1917 Reproduction from Seed Stored in the Forest Floor 
23 
upon seed produced after the burn. On one area which had burned over 
twice no reproduction followed the second bum. The patches which 
escaped the second fire have good reproduction of Douglas fir, cedar, 
and hemlock of age classes which indicate they germinated shortly after 
the cutting, while the area rebumed supports only occasional seedlings. 
These seedlings very likely are due to seeds carried in by winds or animals 
after the second burn. 
At Esperance, Wash., south of Martha Lake, a 20-year-old stand of 
good reproduction was found following a single slash fire (PI. 7, C). The 
debris was only partially consumed, and evidences of a rather light burn 
were apparent. At Bitter Lake, south of Esperance, a good stand of 
reproduction 9 years old occurred in a slash area covered by a single 
fire. The remaining stumps and logs are only fire scarred and burned 
lightly—evidences of a light slash fire. This stand of reproduction oc¬ 
curred at distances of 8 chains and more from green seed trees. Another 
area in this locality burned by a severe slash fire had a dense stand of 
reproduction at 8 or 10 chains from seed trees. 
Excellent stands of reproduction 20 years old, Douglas fir principally, 
with scattered western red cedar and western hemlock, occurred along 
the Edmonds Road about yi mile east of the Pacific Highway. These 
are examples of reproduction in unburned slash following cuttings. 
The stands are great distances from green seed trees, and the even-aged 
class establishes the fact that they all followed within a few seasons 
after cutting. The fact that no evidences of a slash fire and no seed trees 
were found at the time of the study indicates that no seed trees were in 
the area after cutting. Had there been any seed trees left after cutting, 
they would still be there, since only a small percentage of trees left after 
cutting are wind-thrown in this region. 
The results secured by the study of cut-over areas were not so definite 
as those obtained on burns in virgin stands. The exact history of the 
areas could not be obtained, without which the interpretation of results 
was difficult and in many instances impossible. The history of bums 
in virgin forests can usually be definitely determined; but the complex 
conditions generally prevailing in cut-over areas as a result of man’s 
operations, are as a rule difficult to analyze and often impossible of in¬ 
terpretation. Final results in this field can be obtained only by means 
of the permanent plot, the complete history of which is known. 
CONCLUSIONS 
The study of burns and cut-over areas in the Douglas-fir region of the 
Pacific Northwest has brought out the following facts: 
(1) The distance to which seed trees are capable of restocking the 
ground is limited to from 150 to 300 feet. They can not, therefore, 
account for the restocking of the large burned areas. 
