The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1910-11-18

mountain barrier to the southern coast. On
the coast of southeastern Alaska trees grow to
large size in the interior the timber is much
smaller The higher mountain areas are COM
pletely above timber line. Climatic conditions
in the region adjacent to Boring sea and on
the Arctic slope make forest growth altogether
impossible, so there great stretches OF
tundra whose vegetation consists chiefly OF
moss, sedges and few small shrubs. Moss
may be said to be the garment of Alaska, and
layers of 1t IL to 10 inches thick are not at
all uncommon either on the coast or in the
interior
1t is estimated that the total forest and
woodland area of Alaska is approximately 100,-
100000 acres, or about q per cent. of the land
surface of the territory. OF these, about
100000 acres may constantly bear timber
of sufficient size and density to be considered
forest in the sense that much of it be
used for saw timber while the balance,
80,000,000 acres is woodland which bears
some saw timber, but on which the forest is
OF smaller and more scattered character
and valuable chiefly for fuel.
There is not sufficient information upon
which to base any satisfactory estimate Of
the total stand of timber In Alaska 1t has
been estimated, for instance that the coast
forests contain $4,000, 100000 feet of merchant
able saw timber, but this estimate might be
lock closely utilized. More than twenty cords
per acre have been cut in good stands of birch
and aspen in the interior but, on the other
hand, there are large areas of black spruce
that is too small to for any purpose; so
that 1t Is still impossible to give satisfactory
estimate of the total stand
The coast forests of southeastern and south
ern Alaska are nearly all included in the Ton
gass and Chugach National forests, which COM
prise 26,761,626 acres; and large proportion
of this area is forested The species are chiefly
western hemlock (Tsuga heterophyla), Sitka
spruce (Picea sitchensis), western red cedar
(Thuja plicata), and yellow cedar (Chamaecy.
paris nootkatenss). On the coast the timber
line is low. On deer mountain at Ketchikan, for
instance, spruce saw timber stops at about
1900 feet and the peak, with an elevation OF
5000 feet, bears only stunted black hemlock.
In the coast region the stand is generally
dense, and as much as $4,000 feet per acre has
been estimated for considerable tracts Sitka
spruce probably averages 20 per cent. Of the
stand, and western hemlock about rs per cent.
The spruce reaches a large size, and occasion
ally attains diameters Of more than six feet
and heights Of $50 feet Diameters of three
to four feet are attained by western red cedar
While by far the most abundant species, west
ern hemlock. does not produce as large indi-
vidual trees as the spruce or the cedar.
Practically the entire forest of the coast re-
gion is overmature 1t has been accommodating
. for ages uninjured by fire or cutting. Shallow
rocky soil, steep mountain slopes, or poor
drainage often prevent thrifty growth, and on
such sites "stagheadedness" and decay are
common. In favorable situations the rate Of
growth of the coast trees is fairly rapid. The
following are typical:
A western red cedar stump in good soil on