U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE PA 613 It will not take long to realize or remember that of all America’s riches, the inherited and acquired, the natural and manmade, trees are among our most cherished. It would be a poorer nation indeed without them, if a nation at all. As living creatures they delight the eye and inspire belief as you walk among them. As wood, logged and hewn, they serve civilization in myriad ways. When the Founding Fathers arrived, the native American forest st

What are the National Forests from which much of our timber comes? Trees are their dominant characteristic, but trees are hardly alone or even self-sufficient, for a forest is a vibrantly complex, interwoven community of many forms of life. Within its depths the tree, shrubby plant, large animal, and minute creature struggle together and against each other to survive and to perpetuate their species. From the beginning to the end of its days, the tree exerts a ceaseless effort in the contest for

Throughout the 182 million acres of the National Forests other important factors are weighed in the balance with the need to produce timber. They may be the reason for heavy cutting, light cutting, or no cutting. Wildlife, for example, has become increasingly dependent upon the National Forests. Almost everywhere the land available to it has been reduced through the spread of towns, cities, industries, and highways. It is estimated that the native American forest once covered more than 900 milli

Douglas-Fir, ponderosa and southern pines, yellow-poplar, sugar maple, and the white oak are great American trees, beauties on the landscape wherever they stand. As forest trees, they are grown to serve many useful purposes. You can derive more enjoyment from your travels through the National Forests by observing these and other species and learning why each grows best in its particular environment. Douglas-Fir , the State tree of Oregon, produces more wood products than any other American tree

This plot encompasses giant Douglas-fir and other species growing in favorable conditions of the rain forest. A replica is shown in diorama in the Hall of North American Forests in the American Museum of Natural History in New York. On the east side of the Olympic Peninsula, Mount Walker Summit (elevation 2,769 feet) looks deep into ridges and valleys with examples of block cuttings where Douglas-fir is growing anew....

The arboretum is a proving ground for conifers of the world and now has groups of more than 135 species. Separate areas are devoted to shade tolerance, seed dissemination, rodent control, and other studies. And nearby at the Wind River Nursery, about 5.5 million new trees are produced yearly for reforestation in the Northwest....

The Eddy Arboretum, named for its founder James G. Eddy, contains species of pines from all over the world: 70 species, 35 additional varieties, and 90 different hybrids. It was established in 1925 for breeding and improving this group of timber trees. The Institute, working to propagate faster growing, disease-resistant trees, is successfully crossbreeding species such as Jeffrey and Coulter pines into superior strains....

This 200 acres of new forest was dedicated to the youth of Idaho in 1955, on the 50th anniversary of the Forest Service. Ponderosa pine plantings were made with different techniques every year for 5 years and are being studied in order to develop best methods for regeneration....

The Kaibab Plateau, 60 miles long and 40 miles wide, is rich in scenery, water, wildlife, and timber (ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir). Once the population of the great Kaibab deer herd reached 100,000, far beyond the capacity of the range. Trees were destroyed by wildlife, and thousands of deer died of starvation. Public hunting now keeps the herd in balance....

The marked nature trail demonstrates how the forest lives and grows, its relationship with other natural resources, and how man supplements Nature’s management. This camp is operated by Wisconsin wood industries in cooperation with the Forest Service as a school primarily for high school and college students and teachers in conservation....

This 3,800-acre tract of primeval wilderness was dedicated in 1936 after the Veterans of Foreign Wars suggested a fitting shrine be created to the memory of the author of “Trees.” Within the national shrine are 100 species of hardwood trees, including giant yellow-poplars, oaks, birch, basswood, maple, buckeye, and cherry, with shrubs, vines, and flowers carpeting the forest floor....

This general area includes some of the highest land in the State, ranging up to 350 feet above sea level. It lies within the Red Dirt Game Management Area, where demonstration woodlands are thinned by commercial logging in order to provide food and improved conditions for wildlife....

This is a 120-acre primeval forest of towering eastern white pine. Parts of the land were presented to the Government by a lumber company and women’s clubs. About 15 miles east of Hearts Content is the Tionesta Scenic Area, nearly 2,000 acres of magnificent virgin hardwoods and eastern hemlock....

This drive through the heart of the Green Mountains will show managed northern hardwood forest types, including sugar maple. In addition to these areas, many of the 800 National Forest ranger stations contain displays on local trees. All are designed to show the American people how the resources of the National Forests are cultivated and used to serve the country now and in the future. The Multiple Use Tree, based on an ancient symbol for wood and used as an element of design in this booklet, is

For detailed information on visiting the National Forests, see the map for the headquarters of the Forest Service Region administering the areas you are interested in and write to the appropriate Regional Forester, Forest Service: Federal Building Missoula, Mont. 59801 Federal Center 1720 Building 85 Denver, Colo. 80225 517 Gold Ave. SW. Albuquerque, N. Mex. 87101 324 25th St. Ogden, Utah 84401 630 Sansome St. San Francisco, Calif. 94111 Post Office Box 3623 Portland, Oreg. 97208 Peachtree Rd. N