Historical Wind River Experimental Forest - USFS PNW Research Station Archives
A laboratory to study fire, regeneration, and growth in Douglas-fir forests

Wind River Arboretum was established in 1912 to test the
suitability of exotic trees to the conditions of the Pacific Northwest.
Douglas-fir, a native tree, was determined to be the best.

Numerous permanent sample plots, still measured today,
were established between 1919 and 1949 to follow growth
and development of natural Douglas-fir forests.

Some of the earliest fire weather studies resulted in
the development of fire suppression techniques and
fuel moisture sticks, which are still in use today.

Leo Isaac (1892-1970), still considered the world’s expert
on autecology of Douglas-fir, conducted much of his work
on the Wind River Experimental Forest.

Between 1919 and 1985, many studies using spacing, thinning, pruning,
and fertilization were installed. These data were useful for determining
how to get the maximum growth per acre for Douglas-fir stands, and
are now helpful in determining how to accelerate the development
old-growth structure in Douglas-fir forests.