The Boreal Forests of Alaska
When sheltering from the icy grip of winter, vacationing to a windswept tropical island can be an obvious choice. But where do you go when you’re in the doldrums of summer? For us in the west, Alaska is a convenient destination that offers some relief from the scalding heat and oppressive drought. In the Last Frontier, the subarctic climate is one of extremes, characterized by long, cold winters and short, cool summers. We recently spent some of our summer hiking around the forests of South-Central Alaska, where we catalogued as many interesting plants as we could. Below is a summary of our favorite findings from the land of the midnight sun, with an emphasis on fruiting and edible plants.
Alaska’s Terrestrial Biomes
Alaska is an expansive landscape with a wide variety of ecosystems, plant communities, and animal habitats. Because of its northernly latitude, Alaska’s environment shares many similarities with other circumpolar regions in the northern hemisphere. These commonalities in flora and fauna are not simply due to kindred climates, but also to a shared past. Before 20,000 years ago, the polar ice caps were much larger than they are today and ice sheets covered most of northern North America, extending further south than modern Chicago. The recession of these ice sheets means that today’s boreal forests are geologically young and are still mediated by the formidable forces of glaciers and permafrost.
Rivers of ice
Ice fields in the mountains drain through the valleys as glaciers, which slowly melt into “proglacial rivers” throughout the region. Below the surface, permafrost remains frozen year round, creating an non-porous barrier that encourages wetlands and bogs.
Coastal Temperate Rainforests
Much of Alaska’s southern coastline is dominated by temperate rainforests, where there is abundant rainfall and a richly diverse ecosystem. Proximity to the sea, and its complex web of marine life and seabirds, provides an influx of nutrients that can be scarce in the interior. The ocean also provides a mediating force on the climate of the coast, softening temperature extremes.
Conifers dominate the temperate rainforests, including Sitka Spruce, Western and Mountain Hemlock, and Yellow Cedar. In fact, Sitka Spruce struggle to survive outside of temperate rainforests, as this species is poorly adapted to regulating water transpiration through its needles and relies on ample supplies of moisture year-round. Lichens and mosses also thrive in these forests, often draping from the canopy.
A forager’s delight
Highbush Cranberry is popular for jams and jellies. While not actually related to cranberries (Vaccinium sp.) the flavor is similar.
We witnessed many understory shrubs and groundcovers in the coastal temperate rainforests and took particular note of the edible or useful species. Highbush Cranberry (Viburnum edule) is a favorite among foragers and makes a delicious jam or syrup. Often thought of as a Scandinavian delicacy, Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) is a common groundcover plant in Alaska that is also easy to forage, if you’re patient. While you can find the occasional raspberry by the coast, you’re more likely to find its cousins, the Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) and Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus). Finally, Sweet Gale (Myrica gale) is shrub that prefers wet or boggy sites and whose leaves have a characteristic sweet flavor. Sweet Gale has had many uses throughout history in Europe, including in herbal teas, condiments and seasonings, and as a flavoring in beer, mead, and schnapps.
Sweet Gale leaves have a sweet, spicy scent
Bunch Berry is quite unlike its arboreal cousins, the dogwoods
We made note of the perfectly edible but unpalatable Bunch Berry (Cornus canadensis) and Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum). Another attractive native of the coastal temperate rainforest is the Twistedstalk (Streptopus amplexifolius), which may or may not be edible depending on who you ask. Some folks liken it to cucumber or watermelon and others emphasize its laxative qualities. Seeing as how we were tent camping in remote regions, we abstained from trying it this time around!
Crowberry & Lingonberry can be found throughout Alaska
Twistedstalk, or Watermelon Berry, has both fans & skeptics
Taiga
When traveling inland from the coast, we quickly found ourselves climbing in elevation into the foothills and valleys of the mountains. As we ascended, we noticed an increasing prevalence of hardwoods like Aspen and Poplar, but more curiously we watched the conifers shrink. Cedars and Spruces were replaced by shorter Tamarack, Black Spruce, and White Spruce. Along the riverbanks, scrubby thickets of willow competed with alders. We had entered the Taiga biome; a widespread forest ecosystem that varies by local conditions. The taiga is one of the most prevalent biomes on earth, accounting for up to 11.5% of the earth’s land surface area.
Where meadow meets the forest
In the subalpine taiga, Labrador Tea, Bog Blueberry, Crowberry, Lingonberry, and Lichens carpet the ground
One curious feature of taiga forests is the plentitude of surface water, in the form of bogs, ponds, and lakes. Here, just below the surface, permafrost acts like shallow bedrock, preventing water from draining and roots from delving deeper than the topsoil. This geologic feature stunts the forest much like the top of a mountain, leading to a boggy forest ecosystem known as a muskeg. While this landscape is harsh, it is also home to a surprising bounty of fruiting plants. Here we found Cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), Nagoonberry (Rubus arcticus), Bog Cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccos), and Bog Blueberry (Vaccinium uliginosum). Beyond the berries of the muskeg, we found ourselves fascinated with the fragrant leaves of Labrador Tea (Rhododendron tomentosum and R. groenlandicum).
Bog Blueberry is a treat for hikers... and bears alike
Nagoonberry grows only a few inches high, but has great fruit
In the mountain valleys where the soil drains you can find Soapberry (Shepherdia canadensis), Silverberry (Elaeagnus commutata), Raspberry (Rubus idaeus), Trailing Black Currant (Ribes laxiflorum), Pumpkin Berry (Geocaulon lividum), Wild Potato (Hedysarum alpinum), and the Red Bearberry (Arctous rubra). There are six Ribes species native to Alaska, the most useful of which are Red Currant (Ribes triste and Ribes glandulosum), Gooseberry (Ribes oxyacanthoides), and Northern Black Currant (Ribes hudsonianum). All of these edible plants have a rich history, and continuing role, of culinary use in Alaska Native diets.
Tundra
Of all the habitable climes of Alaska, none are as harsh as the tundra of North and the West of the state. As you leave the taiga of the interior, you'll experience a dramatic shift from the forests to what appears to be a barren landscape. Low shrubs dot the horizon over flat expanses of mosses, sedges, and lichens. While we unfortunately didn’t get a chance to experience the tundra on this trip, we did get to spend some time with its champion, the Muskox. The Muskox is a relict of the ice age and once roamed much of the northern hemisphere alongside now-extinct megafauna. Fortunately for us, the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer, AK was a convenient stop on our way back into Anchorage to catch our flight home.
Pleistocene megafauna
Muskox are a prehistoric mammal that once roamed the tundra amongside woolly mammoths, saber-tooth tigers, and giant ground sloths