An area of 738 acres about 20 miles north and west of Port Alberni on Vancouver Island was seeded by helicopter to Douglas fir (1/2 pound per acre) and western hemlock (1/5 pound per acre) in November 1951. One week earlier this area and a surrounding buffer strip, totalling 1760 acres, had been baited by helicopter using wheat treated with thallous sulphate and "1080".Baiting was successful and the roden:trap ratio dropped from 1:4.6 to 1:94.3 as a result. By April the ratio had climbed again to 1:18.7. By the first week of June 1952, a total of about 1400 Douglas fir and 840 hemlock had germinated per acre. By November 1952, this had dropped to 1000 Douglas fir and 198 hemlock per acre. A final extensive survey in June 1954, showed a total of 730 Douglas fir and 57 hemlock of the 1952 crop per acre with a milacre stocking of 42.0 percent for Douglas fir and 43.9 percent for Douglas fir and hemlock. The 4-milacre stocking due to the 1952 Douglas fir seedlings was 78.3 percent. Practically all of the seedlings that germinated in 1952 are attributed to the seeding operation because of the relatively uniform distribution of seedlings and the lack of seedlings on the control area.The seeding operation in itself restocked 628 acres to B.C. Forest Service minimum standards (31 percent by 1-milacres). It restocked 708 acres to U.S. "medium" or "good" standards. With natural trees included, only 28 acres are below B.C. Forest Service standards, and 6 acres below U.S. "medium" stocking. Total stocking, including natural trees, is 59.3 percent by 1-milacres and 88.6 percent by 4-milacres.The baiting and seeding operation can be considered highly successful. The surviving Douglas firs are healthy and vigorous and show little deer or grouse damage to date. Distribution of the seedlings is good and most gaps that occurred are believed due to uneven local distribution of seed. Considering that this experiment was carried out on a rather steep south exposure and that the first summer following seeding was unusually hot and dry, the satisfactory results suggest that direct seeding following rodent control has a definite place in West Coast forestry practice. It may well take the place of more expensive and troublesome planting on many areas that are slow to restock.
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