FORESTRY SURVEY 269 



slopes of the Illinois valley in Section 19 and portions 

 of the two ravines in Sections 16 and 17, together cover- 

 ing 50 acres. In the ravine immediately north and east 

 of the town of Peru the open pastured forest is conspicuous 

 for the predominance of the buckeye, while the open stand 

 associated with the ravine nearer to the city of La Salle 

 is largely composed of bur oak. 



The wide flood plain of the Illinois River is cleared and 

 cultivated with the exception of a few wet depressions. 

 The road leading from the town of Perti southward across 

 the plain is bordered by a fringe, partly planted, of river 

 maple, cottonwood and black willow while just west of the 

 road on the Sections 29 and 30 is a stand of stream side 

 forest in which river maples 1 to 10 inches in diameter 

 constittite 75 Tc of the stand. With them are associated 

 white ash. elm and black willow and the typical under- 

 growth of smaller willows, button bush and such herbs as 

 swamp docks (Riime.r spp.), smartweeds, wood nettle (La- 

 portca) and swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus militaris). 



On the south side of the Illinois River flood plain steep 

 slopes go up to the rolling upland 200 feet above. These 

 slopes are dissected by ravines the principal one being cut 

 by Cedar Creek, while two smaller streams west of and 

 parallel to this stream have eroded similar steep-sided 

 valleys. The forested areas are almost wholly confined to 

 these slopes and ravines. Only along Cedar Creek has a 

 flood plain developed and here it is limited to the lower 

 half of the stream. It has-been cleared with the exception 

 of a few (5) acres of walnut bottom in Section 33, with 

 trees 6 to 12 inches across, and a smaller portion farther 

 up the stream with a mixed stand of elm, sycamore, walnut, 

 hickory, buckeye and cottonwood with a frequent occur- 

 rence of thorn and crab apple as undergTowth. 



The remainder of the forest is of the upland oak type. 

 The largest area of a nearly closed stand is to be seen near 

 the foot of the Cedar Creek valley tipon the right slope and 

 in the ravine of a tributary stream at the left. This is 

 second growth with trees having diameters of 2 to S inches, 

 white and red oak and the red-btid (Cercis) being particu- 

 larly abtmdant. Towards the head of the tributary stream 

 black and btir oaks mingle with white and red in a similar 

 grazed stand. 



