Two Schools of Thought ... A Healthy Forest

On two separate tours we were taught about a healthy forest.  With the exception that they were completely opposing viewpoints and both have their positive points.





Clear Cut Area

One point of view is that you should clear cut a portion of the forest in intervals.  The catch to this one is that the amount of space that is clear cut needs to be controlled.  If too large of a spot is cleared, it can cause landslides or mudslides. Cutting the trees and not replanting allows the sun to reach the ground and seeds that have been falling off the trees for years can now germinate and create a healthy new growth.




Mountain with Different Stages of Growth

The opposite teaching was to never cut a tree out of the forest (even if it is diseased.)  Allow the trees to fall and decay thus creating a nutritional base for the next generation of forest.  Remember that this is in a rain forest and by definition a temperate rainforest receives between 60 – 200 inches of rain annually.  That decreases the chances of forest fire and the extra rain increases the rate of decomposition. 




Moss and Trees Growing on Decomposing Tree

As the trees fall, seeds will fall on top of them and the roots will grow through and around the fallen tree.  On the granite mountains with very little or poor top soil, the added nutrients will help a healthier forest grow.  It is amazing how the big and tall trees can grow for so many years with such  a shallow hold into the earth.

Tree Grown Over Decomposing Tree

Both viewpoints make good common sense.  I believe that both have their appropriate times to be used.  It amazed me when I saw the trees growing over each other with only about 4-6 inches of top soil.  It also amazed me when I saw sections of a mountain fully covered by saplings that were about 4-6 years old and fully covering the section of the mountain. One area had so little soil that it needed the fallen trees to add to the base soil.  The other section had enough roots left in it to keep the existing soil in place for the few years that it took for the saplings to get large enough to once again cover the mountain side.