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Pond Edges

Description

Pond margins support a complex community of plants, distinctly zoned. Shrubs grow in the drier portions while grasses, sedges, and herbaceous perennials grow in the flooded and emergent portions.

Selected Plants

Shrubs

Herbs

Occurrence

The edge of Sutherland Pond

The edge of Sutherland Pond

Pondedge vegetation is best viewed in the late summer when the water levels are low. Excellent examples can be found along the south shore of Jim's Pond and the west shore of Sutherland Pond.

The edges of the reservoirs are often too steep and rocky to have this type of vegetation.

Ecology

Plants of pond edges grow in clearly distinguishable zones, depending on the water depth. A dense thicket of shrubs and small trees usually surrounds the pond. The uppermost zone is dominated by leatherleaf and peat mosses. This zone resembles shrub swamp vegetation and, like it, is only seasonally flooded. Next is a zone of grasses and sedges, which resembles the vegetation of marshes and fens. This zone is flooded for most of the year but is usually dry in the late summer and fall. The next zone is the mud flat, exposed only in late summer and fall, and home to the species uniquely adapted to pond edges.

Also Called

For general references, see the reference page.

Photos: Kerry Barringer