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Sugar Maple Woods

Description

The most diverse woodlands in the forest occur on lower slopes where the soils are rich and moist. In these sites, the canopy lets through little light, so the shrub and herb layers are thin. Most of the herbs flower in the spring before the trees leaf out.

Selected Plants

Fall color near Black Rock Brook

Fall color near Black Rock Brook

Trees

Shrubs

Herbs

Occurrence

These woods are generally found on the north-facing slopes of the hills, in areas with moderate slope. Small pockets are occasionally found in depressions in the uplands where soils have been able to build up and where moisture is retained. Good examples are found in the hollow between Hill of Pines and Mount Misery and along lower Black Rock Brook.

Ecology

Sugar Maples with fall color

Sugar maples with fall color

Sugar maple woods grow on sites with relatively deep, rich soils and good moisture. In the forest, they usually occur on the thick, glacial soils found on the north-facing slopes. These slopes receive less sun and are under less stress in the hot, dry summers. Also, nutrients percolate downhill from the upper slopes and enrich the soil.

Tulip trees, with their straight trunks, grow in old pastures and clearings. Linden and beech occur on the richest soils, often near streams. Seedlings of sugar maples are usually common on all these sites.

History

The American chestnut (Castanea dentata) was a dominant tree in the forest until it was killed by the imported chestnut blight fungus. The fungus kills only the aboveground parts and the roots continue to sprout for many years. On the drier slopes most of the chestnut roots have died, but occasional sprouts can still be found in these rich moist sites.

Gently sloping areas were cleared for farming because the deep, fertile soils grow good crops. Most of the slopes in the forest were too steep for crops, but the forests on the lower slopes were repeatedly cut for wood. An old sawmill pond can still be seen along the lower portion of Black Rock Brook, and an earth dam across from the Science Center parking lot indicates the site of Mailly's Mill.

Also Called

Selected References

For general references see the reference page.

Photos: Paul Harwood, Kerry Barringer