Snowshoe hares browsed nearly all white spruce seedlings sampled on the floodplain. Most browsing of white spruce occurs during peak years of the snowshoe hare cycle. From 1970 to 2011, more white spruce recruited during periods of low hare abundance. Most white spruce encounter two hare peaks before they are released from herbivory. Our results reflect asynchronous recruitment dynamics described by Aldo Leopold.