Southeast Alaska Forests:

Inventory Highlights

Sally Campbell, Willem W.S. van Hees, 

and Bert Mead

United States

Department of

Agriculture

Forest 

Service

Pacific Northwest

Research Station

General Technical Report

PNW-GTR-609

August 2004
Authors

Sally Campbell is a biological scientist, Forestry Sciences Laboratory, 620 SW Main Street, 

Suite 400, Portland, OR 97205; Willem W.S. van Hees and Bert Mead are research foresters, 

Forestry Sciences Laboratory, 3301 C Street, Suite 200, Anchorage, AK 99503.

Cover: Harris River Bay, Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. Photo by Tom Iraci.

Twelve-Mile Arm, Prince of Wales Island. Photo by Tom Iraci.
Southeast Alaska Forests:

Inventory Highlights

Sally Campbell, Willem W.S. van Hees, and Bert Mead

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service

Pacific Northwest Research Station

Portland, OR

General Technical Report PNW-GTR-609

August 2004

Abstract

Campbell, Sally; van Hees, Willem W.S.; Mead, Bert. 2004. Southeast Alaska forests: inventory 

highlights. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-609. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, 

Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 20 p.

This publication presents highlights of a recent southeast Alaska inventory and analysis conducted by 

the Pacific Northwest Research Station Forest Inventory and Analysis Program (USDA Forest Service). 

Southeast Alaska has about 22.9 million acres, of which two-thirds are vegetated. Almost 11 million 

acres are forest land and about 4 million acres have nonforest vegetation (herbs and shrubs). Species 

diversity is greatest in western hemlock–Alaska cedar closed-canopy forests, in mixed-conifer open and 

woodland forests, and in open tall alder-willow shrub type. Of the forest land, 4.1 million acres are 

classified as timberland (unreserved productive forest land). About 4.4 million acres of forest land are 

reserved from harvest; the majority of this reserved land (85 percent) is on the Tongass National Forest 

(USDA Forest Service). The volume of timber on timberland was estimated at 21,040 million cubic 

feet; the majority of volume—88 percent—is on the Tongass National Forest. Seventy-four percent of 

timberland acres and 84 percent of the growing-stock volume is in sawtimber stands older than 150 

years, with western hemlock or western hemlock–Sitka spruce mix predominating. Most timberland in 

southeast Alaska is of relatively low productivity, producing less than 85 cubic feet per acre per year. For 

most timberland acres, average annual growth exceeds average annual mortality and harvest. 

Auke village, near Juneau. Photo by Tom Iraci.
Photo by Andy Tasler.
1

Introduction

A N INVENTORY OF THE FOREST RESOURCES in southeast Alaska was conducted 

by the Pacific Northwest Research Station Forest Inventory and Analysis Program 

(USDA Forest Service) from 1995 to 2000 (fig. 1). An indepth analysis of the data has been 

published (van Hees 2003). Here we summarize a portion of the information from the 2003 

report, focusing on some of the forestry issues in southeast Alaska: 

• What types of vegetation are in southeast Alaska?

• How much is forest and who owns it?

• What forest land is protected from harvest? 

• How much timber is available for harvest? 

• How much of the forest is sawtimber and where is it? 

• What is the productivity of southeast Alaska timberland? 

• What is the rate of growth, mortality, and harvest? 

A L A S K A

Juneau

0 30 60 miles

Petersburg

Ketchikan

Sitka

Figure 1—Southeast Alaska inventory area, 2000.
2

Inventory Methods

The inventory of forest resources in southeast coastal Alaska used a systematic grid sample 

with grid spacing of 3 miles. In all, 3,946 plots were located within the inventory area; 862 of 

these plots had some productive forest on them. About half (1,984) of the locations had some 

forested land cover (productive, nonproductive, or inaccessible forest). Plots that were barren 

or covered with ice and snow were not visited on the ground. All vegetated plots (forested and 

nonforested) were visited and sampled with a cluster of four, 24-foot fixed-radius subplots. Each 

subplot was mapped for land cover. Field plot design is detailed in Scott and Bechtold (1995.)

Trees were sampled at each of the four subplots, with many attributes measured such as diameter, height, species, age, and number of seedlings. Down wood and vegetation structure and 

diversity were characterized at the first subplot in each vegetation type, on three linear transects 

for the down wood, and on an 18.5-foot-radius plot for the vegetation. Data collection procedures are documented annually (USDA Forest Service 1995–2000). Because this was an initial 

inventory, no remeasurement data were taken. Therefore, growth was modeled from radial 

growth and height measurements, and mortality year was estimated for dead trees. 

PNW Forest Inventory and Analysis field crew members Misha Yaskov (left) and Shawn Osborn (right). Photo by 

Andy Tasler.
3

What Types of

Vegetation

Are in Southeast Alaska?

Figure 2—Land cover categories, southeast Alaska. Source: Statewide 

vegetation/land cover map of Alaska (Fleming 1998).

Figure 3—Area of vegetated land by vegetation type, southeast Alaska, 2000.

T HE TOTAL LAND AND water area of the southeast 

Alaska inventory area is 22.9 million 

acres. Two-thirds of it has some kind 

of vegetation on it (fig. 2). Of this vegetated portion, 72 percent has forest as 

the major cover, 22 percent has shrubs 

and dwarf trees, and 6 percent has 

herbs, grass, moss, or lichens (fig. 3).

Location and Abundance of 

Nonforest Vegetation Types 

Many nonforest areas in southeast 

Alaska are greatly influenced by recent 

glaciation history. Soils are typically thin and rocky. As glaciers recede, many of the earliest pioneer 

plants are nitrogen-fixing plants and shrubs, such as alder, which prepare the soil for colonization and 

further succession into forest community types. Nonforest communities may dominate these areas for 

decades to hundreds of years. Other areas are nonforest because of strong winds, cold, poorly drained 

soils present in low-lying areas, or extremely steep terrain subject to avalanches or rock fall.
4

• Dwarf-tree shrub types cover an estimated 415,000 acres, occurring either on alpine 

sites near treeline as krummholz or as stunted trees on wet or bog soil conditions at 

lower elevations. 

• Tall shrub types are the most common nonforest condition sampled found on 791,000 

acres, representing 5.2 percent of the vegetated area of southeast Alaska. 

• Low shrub types predominate on 336,000 acres with copperbush (see “Common and 

Scientific Names”) type on 78,000 acres and sweetgale, a nitrogen-fixing shrub, type on 

38,000 acres where it can compete in peatland areas where nitrogen is limiting. 

• Dwarf shrub types including Alaska moss heather and mountain heather are found on 

245,000 and 115,000 acres, respectively. Crowberry ericaceous dwarf shrub tundra occurs on 37,000 acres. Crowberry has small black berries that are favored by bears and that 

are eaten in small quantities by the Haida native people and more recent immigrants.

• Herbaceous types cover 905,000 acres, with mixed-herb and marsh types predominating, 

followed by wet sedge-tundra and alpine herb. 

• Numerous other community types were documented on only a small number of plots, so 

detailed community descriptions and complete species lists cannot be written from the 

inventory data. 

Mountain heather tundra. Photo by PNW-FIA.
5

Diversity of Vegetation

Among closed forest plots, mixed-conifer forest 

had the highest diversity across all locations, followed 

by western hemlock–Alaska cedar and western hemlock–western redcedar forest. In open and woodland 

forests, the highest diversity was found in mixedconifer forests, which have lower timber productivity. 

Lowest diversity values were found in Sitka spruce 

and black cottonwood forests. This may be because 

the black cottonwood type, and to a lesser extent, the 

pure Sitka spruce type, are often found in riparian 

areas, which are frequently flooded causing sparser 

understories with primarily pioneer vegetation species.

Among tall shrub types, highest diversity was 

found in open tall alder-willow types. Among low 

shrub types, the copperbush types had the highest 

diversity, and among dwarf shrub types, crowberry 

tundra type was highest in diversity. On herbaceous 

plots, mixed-herb types had highest diversity and 

fresh sedge marshes had the lowest diversity.

Open mountain hemlock. Photo by PNW-FIA.

Red alder stand, southeast Alaska. Photo by Tom Iraci.

Fireweed, Blueberry Hill, near Juneau. Photo by Tom 

Iraci.
6

Table 1—Estimated area by forest land class and owner 

group, southeast Alaska, 2000

Owner group Timberland

Other 

forest land

Total 

forest land

 - - - - - - - - - Million acres - - - - - - - - -

National forest 3.4 5.9 9.4

Other federal <.05 .6 .6

State and local .3 .1 .4

Private .4 .2 .6

Figure 4—Area (million acres) of forest and nonforest, southeast 

Alaska, 2000.

L ESS THAN HALF OF southeast 

Alaska—10.9 million acres or 

48 percent—is defined as forest land 

(figs. 2 and 4). 

The Tongass National Forest 1

manages over 85 percent of the forest 

land in southeast Alaska; other federal 

agencies manage 5 percent, state and 

local agencies manage 4 percent, and 

the remaining 5 percent is privately 

owned (table 1).

1 Estimates for the Tongass National 

Forest presented in this publication are 

derived from a sample and so do not 

precisely match similar estimates in the 

Tongass Land Management Plan.

How Much of

Southeast Alaska Is Forest

and Who Owns It?

Maybeso Creek 

and adjacent bogs, 

Prince of Wales 

Island. Photo by 

Tom Iraci.
7

F ORTY PERCENT OF 

the forest land in 

southeast Alaska (4.4 million 

acres) is reserved and includes 

national parks, national forest 

wilderness areas, and federal 

game refuges (fig. 5). State, 

local, and private lands do not 

currently have any forest land 

that is designated as reserved. 

In addition to forested lands 

officially designated as 

reserved (3.8 million acres), 

most of the timberland on the 

Tongass National Forest (2.7 million acres or 80 percent) is not considered suitable for timber harvest 

under the Tongass Land Management Plan (USDA Forest Service 1997) because it is currently managed 

for other uses such as research natural areas, recreation areas, beach fringe, riparian areas, scenic viewsheds, and wild and scenic rivers. Revisions of the plan in the future could result in changes in timber 

production locations and acres.

Figure 5—Protected areas in southeast Alaska. Source: Alaska Department of 

Natural Resources 2001.

What Forest Land

Is Protected

From Harvest?

Meadow with Bering Glacier in distance, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Photo by Walter Foss.
8

Figure 6—Area of timberland by owner group, southeast Alaska, 2000.

Timberland Area 

and Owners 

A total of 4.1 million 

acres is classified as timberland, the productive 

component of forest land 

not withdrawn from timber 

harvest by law or statute. 

Most of this timberland (3.4 

million acres) is managed by 

the Tongass National Forest 

(fig. 6); of this, only 676,000 

acres are considered suitable for timber harvest under the Tongass Land Management Plan 

(see “What Forest Land Is Protected From Harvest?” on page 7). The state of Alaska manages 

258,000 acres of timberland, and 396,000 acres are in private ownership. Other federal agencies 

and municipalities, combined, manage less than 1 percent of all timberland. 

3.40

4.0

3.5

3.0

2.5

2.0

1.5

1.0

0.5

0

Acres (million)

National

forest

Owner group

0.01

0.30 0.40

Other

federal

State and

local

Private

How Much

Timber Is Available

for Harvest?

Mill near Craig, Alaska. Photo by Tom Iraci.
9

Figure 7—Growing-stock volume (billion cubic feet) on 

timberland by owner group, southeast Alaska, 2000.

Timberland Volume and 

Owners

Timber availability also can 

be measured by the amount of 

wood volume available for harvest. Although the total volume 

of growing stock on timberland 

in southeast Alaska is 21.04 billion cubic feet, not all of this is 

available for harvest. The Tongass 

National Forest manages almost 

88 percent (18.41 billion cubic 

feet) of all growing-stock volume on timberland (which is comparable to the 83 percent 

of timberland acres they manage) (fig. 7) but much of the timber volume on those acres is 

not suitable for harvest owing to restrictions under the Tongass Land Management Plan 

(see “What Forest Land Is Protected From Harvest?” on page 7).

Clearcuts, southeast Alaska. Photo by Tom Iraci.
10

Area in Sawtimber

Timberland in southeast Alaska is 

dominated by sawtimber-sized stands 

(fig. 8). The majority of these stands are 

over 150 years old and make up about 

74 percent of timberland acres (fig. 9). 

Eighty-eight percent of timberland on the 

Tongass National Forest has sawtimber 

stands, and 90 percent of them are more 

than 150 years old; in comparison, 65 percent of state, local, and private timberland 

has sawtimber stands of which 68 percent 

are more than 150 years old. 

Western hemlock is either the primary species or a major component in a 

mix of species in most of the sawtimber-sized stands (fig. 10).

Figure 8—Percentage distribution of timberland acres by stand 

size classes, all owners, southeast Alaska, 2000.

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Acres (percent)

Seedlings

and saplings

Stand size class

Poletimber Sawtimber Nonstocked

How Much of the

Forest Is Sawtimber

and Where Is It ?

Old sawtimber stand near Juneau, Alaska. Photo by PNW-FIA.
11

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

Acres (thousand)

<50

Stand age class

50–100 110–150 160–200 200+

20.8 124.3

311.3

486.8

2,477.2

Figure 9—Distribution of 

sawtimber acres by stand 

age classes, southeast 

Alaska, 2000.

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

Forest type

Acres (thousand)

Total

Old sawtimber

Young sawtimber

Alaska cedar–hemlock

Lodgepole pine

Mixed conifer

Mountain hemlock

Sitka spruce

Western hemlock–Sitka spruce

Western redcedar–hemlock

Western hemlock

Figure 10—Area of timberland 

with sawtimber by softwood forest 

type, southeast Alaska, 2000.
12

Sawtimber Volume 

The bulk, 84 percent (17.68 billion cubic feet), of all growing-stock volume on timberland 

is in old sawtimber-sized stands. An additional 15 percent (3.11 billion cubic feet) is in young 

sawtimber-sized stands. Over one-third of the timber-land volume is in old sawtimber-sized 

stands of western hemlock (fig. 11). Along with stands of western hemlock–Sitka spruce, 

the old sawtimber-sized stands of these two forest types account for 52 percent (11.02 billion 

cubic feet) of the total volume. Growing-stock volume (million cubic feet)

Alaska cedar–hemlock

Lodgepole pine

Mixed conifer

Mountain hemlock

Sitka spruce

Western hemlock–Sitka spruce

Western redcedar–hemlock

Western hemlock

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

Forest type

Figure 11—Volume of old 

sawtimber growing stock 

on timberland by softwood 

forest type, southeast 

Alaska, 2000.
13

PRODUCTIVITY IN THIS SECTION refers to timber productivity rather than other 

measures of forest productivity. Most timberland in southeast Alaska is only slightly more 

productive than the minimum needed to qualify as timberland. Only about 23 percent of all 

southeast Alaska timberland produces more than 85 cubic feet per acre per year. In comparison, 

86 percent of timberland in western Washington produces more than 85 cubic feet per acre per 

year (MacLean et al. 1992). Timber productivity in Alaska tends to be lower than elsewhere 

because a higher percentage of the forest is marginally productive—a characteristic of more 

northern latitudes. Stands with the greatest tree volume are generally near tidewater, with stand 

heights and wood quality diminishing with increasing elevation (Harris and Farr 1974). 

Timber Productivity by Owner

The majority of forest stands on the Tongass National Forest are in the lower productivity 

classes (fig. 12). Highly productive timberland (>165 cubic feet per acre per year) is a minor 

component of southeast Alaska’s forests; only 32,000 acres of timberland are in this category 

and all are on the Tongass. Nearly 40 percent of state and local timberland, however, is of relatively high productivity, producing between 85 and 165 cubic feet per acre per year. On private 

timberland, only 18 percent produces over 85 cubic feet per acre per year. 

0

10

20

30

40

50

20–49 50–84 85–119 120–164 165–224 225+

Productivity class (cubic feet per acre per year)

Acres (percent)

National forest

State and local

Private

Figure 12—Percentage distribution of timberland acres by owner groups and cubic-foot site productivity 

classes, southeast Alaska, 2000.

What Is the

Productivity

of Southeast Alaska Timberland?
14

Timber Productivity by 

Forest Type

Productivity is highest in stands 

of Sitka spruce, western hemlock, and 

mixed hemlock and spruce (fig. 13). 

Mixed conifer, mountain hemlock, 

and Alaska cedar-hemlock stands 

have the lowest productivity.

100

80

60

40

20

0

Forest type

Percentage classified as productive

Mountain hemlock

Alaska cedar–hemlock

Mixed conifer

Western redcedar–hemlock

Sitka spruce

Western hemlock–Sitka spruce

Western hemlock

Figure 13—Percentage of unreserved forest 

land stands classified as productive (capable 

of producing >20 cubic feet per acre per 

year) by forest type, southeast Alaska, 2000.

Uneven-aged stands on the Maybeso Experimental Forest, Prince of Wales Island. Photo by Tom Iraci.
15

Growth, Mortality, and Harvest 

Average gross annual growth of growing stock on timberland is estimated at 174.1 

million cubic feet. Growth exceeded mortality for growing stock on timberland for all 

owners (fig. 14), resulting in overall positive net growth. 

About one-third of the gross growth, or 60.3 million cubic feet, occurred in the western 

hemlock forest type (fig. 15). All forest types except for mixed conifer showed positive net 

growth (gross growth minus mortality). In the mixed-conifer type, mortality (primarily in 

old sawtimber-sized stands) exceeded gross growth, resulting in a negative net growth of 

-3.2 million cubic feet. 

What Is the Rate of

Growth, Mortality, and Harvest?

Down dead trees in western hemlock stand. Photo by Karen Waddell.
16

Figure 15—Average gross annual growth, average annual mortality, and average net annual growth of 

growing stock on timberland by softwood forest type, southeast Alaska, 2000.

Figure 14—Average 

gross annual growth, 

average annual mortality, and average net 

annual growth (gross 

growth minus mortality) 

by owner group, southeast Alaska, 2000.

0

40

80

120

160

National forest Other federal State and local Private

Owner group

Gross growth

Mortality

Net growth

Volume (million cubic feet)

-10

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Forest type

Volume (million cubic feet)

Alaska cedar–

hemlock

Mixed conifer

Mountain hemlock

Sitka spruce

Western hemlock–

Sitka spruce

Western redcedar–

hemlock

Western hemlock

Gross growth

Mortality

Net growth
17

Figure 16—Annual average growth and harvest for sawtimber on timberland by owner group, southeast 

Alaska, 2000. Source: USDA Forest Service, Alaska Region.

Harvest levels in southeast Alaska have decreased in recent years, from 

over 126 million cubic feet in 1995 to about 50 million in 2001. Levels have 

fluctuated by owner with removals on the Tongass National Forest generally 

decreasing, thus influencing the overall level. Harvest has increased significantly on state lands since 2000 and has decreased almost annually since 1997 

on private lands. State lands and the Tongass National Forest showed net 

growth (gross growth minus mortality) exceeding annual harvest amounts for 

most years since 1995 (fig. 16). Harvest levels on private lands were much 

higher than net growth for all years despite decreasing harvest levels (fig. 16). 

Logging truck, with old dead and young live trees in foreground. Photo by Andy Tasler.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

National forest State Private

Owner group

Volume 

(million cubic feet)

Growth, average 

net annual

Harvest, average 

annual, 1995–2001
18

Common and Scientific Names

Common name Scientific name

Trees:

Alaska cedar Chamaecyparis nootkatensis (D. Don) Spach

Black cottonwood Populus balsamifera L. ssp. trichocarpa

 (Torr. & Gray ex Hook.) Brayshaw

Lodgepole pine Pinus contorta (Dougl.) ex Loud.

Mountain hemlock Tsuga mertensiana (Bong.) Carr.

 Red alder Alnus rubra (Bong.)

Sitka spruce Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.

Western hemlock Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.

Western redcedar Thuja plicata (Donn) ex D. Don

Other vegetation:

Alaska moss heather Cassiope mertensiana (Bong.) D. Don. 

Copperbush Elliottia pyroliflorus (Bong.) S.W. Brim & P.F. Stevens

Crowberry Empetrum nigrum L.

 Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium (L.) Holub

Mountain heather Phyllodoce spp. Salisb.

Sweetgale Myrica gale L.

Metric Equivalents

1 inch = 2.54 centimeters

1 foot = 0.3048 meters

1 mile = 1.609 kilometers

1 acre = 0.4047 hectares

1 cubic foot = 0.0283 cubic meters

20 cubic feet per acre = 1.3994 cubic meters per hectare

Literature Cited

Alaska Department of Natural Resources. 2001. Administrative large parcel boundaries. 

Land records information section. Land status. [CD-ROM]. Anchorage, AK. 

Fleming, M. 1998. Statewide vegetation/land cover. [Vegetation map of Alaska, 23 classes, 

19 vegetated, raster format]. http://agdc.usgs.gov/data/projects/fhm/#G. (May 2003).

Harris, A.S.; Farr, W.A. 1974. The forest ecosystem of southeast Alaska. Gen. Tech. Rep. 

PNW-GTR-25. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific 

Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 109 p.

MacLean, C.D.; Bassett, P.M.; Yeary, G. 1992. Timber resource statistics for western 

Washington. Resour. Bull. PNW-RB-191. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 135 p.

Scott, C.T.; Bechtold, W.A. 1995. Techniques and computations for mapping plot clusters 

that straddle stand boundaries. Forest Science Monograph. 31: 46–61. 
19

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 1995–2000. Field procedures for the 

southeast Alaska inventory. Anchorage, AK: Pacific Northwest Research Station and 

Region 10 [Alaska Region]. Annual.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 1997. Tongass Land Management Plan 

Revision, Record of Decision, Alaska Region. R10-MB-338a. Juneau, AK: Region 10 

[Alaska Region]. 44 p.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Alaska Region. 2004. Timber harvest 

data. On file with: Guy Robertson, Ecosystems Planning, USDA Forest Service, P.O. 

Box 21628, Juneau, AK 99802-1628.

van Hees, W.W.S. 2003. Forest resources of southeast Alaska, 2000: results of a singlephase systematic sampling. Res. Pap. PNW-RP-557. Portland, OR: U.S. Department 

of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 96 p.

Glossary 

average gross annual growth—The increase in net volume of wood (the gross volume less 

deductions for defect) for growing-stock trees during the year.

average net annual growth—Average gross annual growth minus the volume of trees that 

died during the year (average annual mortality). 

cull trees—Live trees of sawtimber or poletimber size that are not merchantable for saw 

logs and are unlikely to become merchantable because of defect, rot, or species. 

d.b.h.—Diameter at breast height. 

forest land—Land that is at least 16.7 percent stocked by live trees of any size or that 

formerly had such tree cover and is at least an acre in size and 120 feet wide. 

forest type—A classification of forest land based on the species forming a plurality of 

stocking on the area currently occupied by tree cover. Identification of the appropriate 

forest type for this inventory required a decision process described in van Hees 2003. 

growing-stock trees—All live trees except cull trees.

growing-stock volume—Net volume in cubic feet of live sawtimber and poletimber 

growing-stock trees from stump to a minimum 4.0-inch top (of central stem) outside the 

bark. Net volume equals gross volume less deductions for rot and missing stem sections.

land class—A classification of land by major use, such as timberland, other forest, or 

nonforest. The minimum size (area) for classification is 1 acre.

mortality—The volume of wood from trees that died from natural causes during a 

specified period. 

nonforest land—Land that does not qualify as forest land. Includes land that has never 

supported forests and lands formerly forested where forest use is precluded by development 

for nonforest uses. 
20

other forest land—Forest land not capable of producing 20 cubic feet per acre per year or 

more of wood and not withdrawn from timber use by statute or administrative regulation.

reserved forest land—Forest land withdrawn from timber use through statute or 

administrative regulation.

sawtimber stands—Stands at least 16.7 percent stocked with growing-stock trees, with half 

or more of this stocking in sawtimber trees (growing-stock trees at least 11.0 inches in 

d.b.h. for hardwoods and 9.0 inches for softwoods) or poletimber trees (growing-stock trees 

greater than 5.0 inches and less than 11.0 in d.b.h.) and with sawtimber stocking at least 

equal to that of poletimber.

sawtimber volume—Net volume of sawtimber trees measured in board feet. Net volume 

equals gross volume less deduction for rot, sweep, crook, and other defects that affect use 

for lumber. Board feet are often converted to cubic feet.

seedling and sapling stands—Stands at least 16.7 percent stocked with growing-stock trees 

and with saplings (1.0 to 4.9 in d.b.h.) or seedlings (<1.0 in d.b.h.) composing more than 

half this stocking.

stand size class—A classification of forest land based on the predominant size of trees 

present: sawtimber, poletimber, or seedlings and saplings.

stand age class—The 10-year age class that best characterizes the stand. 

stocking—The degree of occupancy of land by trees, measured by basal area or number of 

trees by size and spacing, or both, compared to a stocking standard: that is, the basal area 

or number of trees, or both, required to fully utilize the growth potential of the land.

timberland—Forest land that is capable of producing 20 cubic feet of wood per acre per 

year and is not reserved from timber harvest. 

vegetation diversity—The average number of distinct species across all locations, also called 

species richness or alpha diversity.
The Forest Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture is dedicated to the 

principle of multiple use management of the Nation’s forest resources for sustained yields of wood, water, forage, wildlife, and recreation. Through forestry 

research, cooperation with the States and private forest owners, and management of the National Forests and National Grasslands, it strives—as directed by 

Congress—to provide increasingly greater service to a growing Nation.

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(Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center 

at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil 

Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, 

SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). 

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

USDA is committed to making its information materials accessible to all 

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