Cultural practices in growing bareroot Western Hemlock and Sitka Spruce seedlings
The Industrial Forestry Association launched its debut into the forest tree seedling nursery business in 1941. It was shortly before then that Col. W.B. Greeley, a former U.S. Forest Service Chief, had come to the Western Douglas Fir Region to head an association of Western Washington and Oregon lumbermen and pulp, paper and plywood manufacturers called the West Coast Lumbermen's Association which is now called the Industrial Forestry Association. He had always lived and worked toward his conception that man with his strong faith in the land and the ability of informed people would manage it wisely during the transition from old forest to new forest. With this in mind and with the limited source of supply of seedlings for reforestation from public agency nurseries, because of political reasons, and non-existence of private nurseries, his leadership encouraged the Association to build its own nursery to supply seedlings to its membership at cost for planting on their lands. The early stages and development of the first IFA nursery was quite hectic and discouraging at times and, I might add, still is. However, with the increasing demands on native forests to continue to supply the material for wood products and paper, the importance of growing seedlings for reforestation became more apparent. At first, the main specie grown was Douglas fir, and Western hemlock and Sitka spruce were considered never to become depleted as it reforested itself almost on its own. However, foresters became more aware that depending on Mother Nature to reforest the hemlock and spruce areas was not to man's liking in relation to economics and supply. The pressure came to the nursery in the early to mid-fifties to produce the hemlock and spruce for use in better management of the natural hemlock and spruce areas on the coasts of Western Washington and Western Oregon.
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Author(s): Rex Eide
Publication: National Nursery Proceedings - 1982
Event:
Western Nurserymen's Conference
1982 - Medford, OR
