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August 14, 2007 : Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands
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Keywords: Pinaceae | Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco var. menziesii | Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands, British Columbia, Canada
The forests of southeastern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands are dominated by coastal Douglas-fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii. In old-growth forests, it can become one of the tallest trees in the world. However, much of the land here has been logged, so few giants remain: “On the east side of the island there is a long history of timber harvesting. The forested area is principally second or third growth stands comprised of Douglas-fir, with minor amounts of red alder, western red cedar, western hemlock, grand fir, and western white pine. A substantial portion of this area is private forest land. Crown lands are relatively small, and fragmented on the east coast.” (source: South Island Forest District).
The tallest Pseudotsuga menziesii measures nearly 100 meters (~325 ft) in height, and can be found in Coos County, Oregon. If you're familiar with Cathedral Grove in the central region of Vancouver Island, the tallest of the Douglas-firs in that area measure approximately 75m (~250 ft), by way of comparison. I'm not an expert at estimating tree heights, but I think I'm safe to say that most second-growth Douglas-fir in this area measure under 40m (~125 ft). I should note, also, that the annual incremental increase in height declines rapidly in Douglas-fir after individuals reach 10-20 years 50-60 years (see comments below re: correction) of age – growing to 75m in height takes a far longer span of time than doubling the time required for an individual tree to reach 37.5m.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at August 14, 2007 1:15 AM
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Posted by: bev at August 14, 2007 4:54 AM
I love the way the clouds pile up above the mountains around the Lower Mainland, giving us in Vancouver a circle of clarity.
Beautiful landscape photograph, Daniel!
Posted by: Debby at August 14, 2007 8:48 AM
A slight correction: mean annual increment in Douglas fir begins to flatten out around 50-60 years of age. This is a volume measurement, but it correlates strongly with height. Info from my former coworker, renowned USDA Forest Service mensurationist Bob Curtis, in http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/pubs/pnw_rp471.pdf.
Note that this paper includes predictions from 4 simulation programs, 3 of which include data from SW British Columbia (1 even from Vancouver Island) so it should apply to your picture.
Posted by: Jenny at August 14, 2007 9:37 AM
Thanks Jenny, I've made the correction. I was basing my statement on a graph from a different paper, but I'm not having any luck rediscovering the reference. I don't think I'll disagree with Bob Curtis, though!
There's more information on site-specific (e.g., coastal vs. interior combined with low elevation vs. high elevation) annual increments of height in the Silvics of North America: Pseudotsuga menziesii.
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin 
at August 14, 2007 10:27 AM
I have my home for sale in Alberta, I grew up in Vancouver and miss the ocean and mountains. This picture makes me very homesick. I am moving to Tahsis on the west coast of the Island. I can't wait...what a wonderous sight this picture is, thank you.
Posted by: Artena Douglas at August 14, 2007 12:40 PM
Thank you for such a beautiful photograph.
Margaret-Rae
Posted by: Margaret-Rae Davis at August 14, 2007 4:18 PM
Daniel, Is the land Saltspring Island? Gorgeous photo and a wonderful reminder of Beautiful British Columbia! Thank you.
Posted by: Cyndy Henderson at August 15, 2007 4:23 PM
I'm fairly certain that the foreground island is Kuper, and that the background with all of the hills is Vancouver Island. I didn't want to say which Gulf Islands were shown in the image because I was probably going to be wrong.
This was taken from the northwest end of Galiano Island, looking west, so that might actually be Reid Island in the foreground, then Thetis, then Vanc. Island.
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin at August 15, 2007 4:35 PM
Actually, I'll change my reply a bit - I think it's most likely Reid + Thetis + Vanc. Island.
Posted by: Daniel Mosquin at August 15, 2007 4:36 PM
Just back from a two week trip to find this gorgeous photo, Daniel. Thanks for sharing it. My sister lives on Vancouver Island ... she's lucky.
Posted by: maureen at August 16, 2007 9:21 AM
You're probably aware of this reference, Daniel, but just in case you aren't, there is a nice summary of past and present big Douglas-firs (and other west coast giants) in Robert Van Pelt's 2001 book,"Forest giants of the Pacific coast" (Global Forest Society in association with Univ. of Washington Press).
Posted by: Bruce Dancik at August 17, 2007 10:14 AM
Please share your comments about the photograph(s) and accompanying write-up. Telling a story about the subject of the photograph(s) is also much appreciated! If you have a gardening question, the best place to ask is on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums. Thank you!
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Daniel;
Well, just go ahead and make me jealous of where you live! (: Beautiful photo.