Canada is home to eight distinct forest regions: Boreal, Subalpine, Montane, Coast, Columbia, Deciduous, Great Lakes-St. Lawrence, and Acadian. Each region hosts unique tree species. British Columbia is the exclusive location for the Columbian, Montane, and Subalpine regions. The East Coast features the only Deciduous and Great Lakes-St. Lawrence regions, while the three Maritime provinces are home to the Acadian forest regions.
The primary areas for forest harvesting are the West and East Coasts. British Columbia is the leading source of softwood lumber in Canada, while Ontario is the main provider of hardwood lumber. Quebec also stands out as one of Canada’s leading provinces in lumber production.
Boreal Forest is the world’s largest land biome, it spans the northern regions of Canada and Alaska. This extensive coniferous forest, situated in an arctic zone, is predominantly composed of spruce, pine, fir, and larch trees.
Subalpine Forest Region is located on mountains above the coniferous forests, the subalpine region has a colder climate and a shorter growing season. Trees in this area tend to be shorter, with Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, and hardy pines being the most common.
Montane Forest Region consists of forests of ponderosa pine, mixed conifer, spruce-fir, and quaking aspen. They are typically located in elevated areas.
Coast Forest Region is situated along the Pacific coast of British Columbia, this region is renowned for its rainforests. It features Douglas firs, Sitka spruces, and western red cedars.
Columbia Forest Region is located between the Rocky Mountains and the Coast Mountains in British Columbia, the Columbia Forest Region consists of lodgepole pine forests, spruce forests, and grasslands.
Deciduous Forest Region is found in southern Ontario and has a big resource of hardwood broadleaf trees such as maple, oak, birch, and beech.
Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Forest Region is from southeastern Manitoba to the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec. This region is the second-largest forest region in Canada. It consists of maple, birch, and beech trees.
Acadian Forest Region is located in the Maritime provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and some parts of Quebec. The forest has a mix of coniferous and deciduous trees. There are sugar maple, yellow birch, and red spruce.
There are more than 300 unique tree species, with 200 of these being indigenous to Canada. The species are categorized by families: Alder, Ash, Beech, Birch, Chamaecyparis, Cherry, Elm, Fir, Hemlock, Hickory, Juniper, Larch, Maple, Oak, Pine, Poplar, Spruce, Thujas, and Walnut. Canada’s extensive forests of both coniferous (softwood trees) and deciduous trees (hardwood trees) enable significant participation in the export of softwood and hardwood lumber. The spruce tree, White Spruce in particular, is the most prevalent type of tree found across all of Canada.
A list of different kinds of Spruce Trees
For a more comprehensive database of all tree species visit this link: https://treecanada.ca/resources/trees-of-canada/
Logging and the harvesting of wood in Canada has always been a native practice dating back many centuries, however, the industry was significantly impacted by the demand of European settlers at the beginning of the 19th century. Logging originated in Europe and was introduced to Canadians to enhance the country’s forestry industry. As a result, this created many opportunities for Canadians to become lumberjacks, typically men, to support their families. This caused an increase in deforestation that disrupted ecosystems and wildlife with no current action plan for sustainability and conservation. Governments began considering forest initiatives with little to no support from pre-existing forest actors until later in the 20th century.