Private contractors, including Celtic Reforestation Services, have begun planting spruce tree seedlings inside a forest of standing dead pine in the Prince George area.

The spruce trees, which generally prefer more shady and moist areas than pine, are expected to do well in the beetle ravaged forests due to the coverage provided by the standing dead trees. Trees such as pine and spruce are usually planted in cleared areas called cutblocks. Which types of trees being planted is determined by the area and what has been known to previously grow there.

The existing pine trees were planted roughly 25 years ago, and were wiped out by the mountain pine-beetle epidemic that swept through the area in recent years, leaving reforestation companies hesitant to replant with pine again. While the long-dead trees possess little market value as timber, they allow trees which would normally not grow in the area, such as spruce, to be cultivated, as well as addressing environmental concerns.

The operation is part of the Province and Ministry of Forests’ efforts to reforest the areas hardest hit by the mountain pine beetle epidemic, along with plans to plant 3.2 million tree seedlings in affected areas around Quesnel and Williams Lake next summer.

“This is just the beginning of our reforestation efforts in the Cariboo,” said Forest and Range Minister Richard Coleman. “We’ve done the mapping and the planning, and ordered the seedlings. Now we are ready to get going on the ground.”