In their zeal to either convert or displace the natives and in their quest for treasure, the first Europeans in the Americas overlooked the most valuable asset the newly discovered lands had to offer, its trees. Stretching inwards from the shores of the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean, vast areas of pristine forests covered the continent. This resource was bountiful and stood as a solid barrier for many years after the first landing of the Europeans. The forests served more as a hindrance to the eager settlers in their westward expansion than any threat from Native American attack or the width of the large rivers they needed to ford.
Once the exploitation of these forests began, it was done with ruthlessness leaving lingering scars. The indiscriminate logging procedures of those early years was a direct result of the lack of foresight in creating a program of forest management. The demand for lumber and the wealth it provided the logging barons became the inspiration for designing machinery to allow harvesting the colossal trees having stood unmolested for hundreds of years. The trees were cut down on a scale equal to a mechanical reaper slicing its way over a ripened wheat field. It is estimated only 1% of old growth forests survived this onslaught.
Sequoia sempervirens, the coast redwood, is the world’s tallest conifer species. It grows to towering heights of 76 meters and reaching diameters of almost 8 meters. The red color of the sequoia is derived from the high tannin content. Pseudotsuga taxifolia, the Douglas fir, is not a true fir; it is a species of conifer and the second tallest conifer in the world. The western hemlock, Tsuga heterophylla, flourishes best in moist settings. The eastern white pine, Pinus strobus, grows to heights of 30 meters and has mature cones growing to 20 centimeters in length at maturity.
