Herbivory by domestic and wild ungulates can dramatically affect vegetation structure, composition and dynamics in nearly every terrestrial ecosystem of the world. These effects are of particular concern in forests of western North America, where intensive herbivory by native and domestic ungulates has the potential to substantially reduce or eliminate deciduous, highly palatable species of aspen (Populus tremuloides), cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa), and willow (Salix spp.). In turn, differential herbivory pressure may favor greater establishment of unpalatable conifers that serve as ladder fuels for stand-replacing fires. The resulting high fuel loads often require silvicultural fuels reductions to mitigate fire risk, which in turn may facilitate additional recruitment of deciduous species but also additional herbivory pressure. Potential interactions of ungulate herbivory with episodic disturbances of silviculture, fire, and other land uses are not well documented, but are thought to operate synergistically to affect forest dynamics. We evaluated individual and joint effects of ungulate herbivory and fuels reduction treatments in grand fir (Abies grandis) and Douglas-fir (Psuedotsuga menziezii) forests that dominate large areas of interior western North America. Recruitment and long-term survival of aspen, cottonwood, and willow species in coniferous forests of interior western North America require a combination of episodic disturbances such as silviculture and fire to facilitate deciduous plant recruitment, followed by reductions in grazing pressure by domestic and wild ungulates during the time intervals between episodic disturbances to facilitate plant establishment, growth and survival.