BOTANICAL SURVEY— SUGAR GROVE REGION 269 



THE FORESTS 

 A. The Lowland Forest 



Thf Hemlock Forest. The deepest forest in the region is that 

 formed hy the hemlock, which is most luxuriant on the sides and bot- 

 toms of the deeper ravines south of ("lear Creek (fig. 11). Tho individual 

 hemlock trees are connnon enough all through the area, the pure hem- 

 lock forest is not found north of that stream. 



In its extreme form the hendock forest is an unmixed association 

 of hemlocks, no other vascular plant but Tsuga canadensis being pres- 

 ent. More often, however, BetiiJa J en hi is associated with Tsuga and 

 the ground is not bare but occupied by the yew {Ta.riis), and herbage 

 consisting of : 



Dryopteris sphnilostim MitchelJa repeiis 



Lycopodium hicichihun Tiar/lla rordifolid 



There are also usually inimerous seedlings of soft maple (Acer 

 ri(brum). In almost all the forests, indeed, this species furnishes a 

 majority of the ti-ee seedlings, but nowhere except in the bottom-land 

 maple swamp do the full gi-own trees become at all abundjint. While 

 maple seedlings seem to be better able to endure deep shading than 

 those of other forest trees, they do not seem to be able to comDete witli 

 them when, by a break in the forest canopy, a place is nuide for a new 

 tree. In tlie abundant illumination supplied by the displacement of 

 one of the original forest trees, other species are apparently able to 

 grow enougVi more rapidly to overcome the lead of the mai)le seedlings 

 already present and to succeed to the vacant place. 



Where the associatioi) begins to give way to the nnxed deciduous 

 forest which usually adjoins it, a few beeches and maples usually come 

 in, and both underbiush and herbage become uiore abundant and varied, 

 the former consisting of: 



ParUiom'^issis iptiiKiin folin Ifdiiiiitcniflix rlrfiinltinn 



Vibnrii II 1)1 na ri l'i)Iiinii CoriniK alh niifolia 



Wlii'e iii the li'.M'bage a])])ear: 



I'iold hldiidii Mrdaihi lirf/inica 



Vriinph lis sj)hiiiU)sinn Unifolium canadense 



Pe ra in i u iii p u h escens 



And ill less lypienl porlioiis are found: 

 nriioiifcris iiKiriiiiKilis (.'irraea alpiiia 



Hrpdlicd acida Carer phnitaginca 



Actea alba Fainiiicuh(.'< rrt-urvalufi 



Arisaema triphyllum Asdnnu sp. 



