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Conditions in the western hemlock- Sitka spruce type are very favorable for natural regeneration. The climate is mild and seed supply is abundant. Western hemlock is a prolific producer of seed, and Sitka spruce is also a good seed producer. Both species have light seeds which are disseminated by wind over considerable distances.

Clearcutting is in general preferable to partial cutting methods in this forest type. Natural regeneration appears rapidly after clearcutting from seed from surrounding stands, and the problem is usually overstocking rather than lack of seedlings. Under these circumstances, not much is gained by leaving seedtrees on the cutover area.

Although the shelterwood method can be employed, it has usually more disadvantages than advantages. Through most of the western hemlock-sitka spruce type, partial cuttings result frequently in invasion by salmonberry and other brush species. Blowdown is another serious problem in stands opened by partial cutting. Shelterwood cuttings tend to favor western hemlock over the less shade-tolerant Sitka spruce and Douglas-fir and thus reduce the proportion of these species in the new stand. Experience in Alaska suggests that growth rate of western hemlock and Sitka spruce is considerably less under shelterwood than in the open. Frequently, mature hemlock is infected by dwarf mistletoe. Again, under these circumstances clearcutting is preferable to shelterwood.

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