TORREYA 



New \»^x* 



Vol. 21 No. 5 



September-October, 1921 



THE FOREST FLORA OF GRASSY SPRAIN RIDGE 



By G. T. Hastings 



In walking through the woods in parts of Westchester County 

 just above New York City the impression was gained that a new 

 type of forest flora is developing there. To test the accuracy of 

 this, and at the same time to see if any correlation could be made 

 between the herbaceous vegetation and particular species of trees, 

 a study was made of the plants on the top and upper slopes of 

 Grassy Sprain Ridge. In the study the adaptation of the quadrat 

 method suggested by Dr. H. A. Gleason* was followed. One 

 meter quadrats were taken every twenty-five paces on lines along 

 the top and slopes of the ridge. On the quadrat each species of 

 herb and shrubs was listed and notes made of the surroundings. 

 All the trees within two meters of the line were counted. 



Grassy Sprain Ridge is one of several ridges parallel to the 

 Hudson Valley in Westchester County. These ridges were all 

 originally forested, have all been partially cut over and have gen- 

 erally gone back to forest condition. The ridge is about two and 

 a half miles long, about a half mile broad and is cut across by a 

 swampy area. There are several rocky knobs along both parts 

 of the ridge and a little level land on parts of the summit. The 

 soil is rocky, with frequent outcrops of gneissic rocks, and is 

 nowhere deep or rich except in a few swampy hollows. A small 

 part of the land was formerly cleared, but at present only a very 

 small area is pastured, and none is or has recently been cultivated. 



Forty-one species of trees were listed, this including several 

 small forms — Cornus florid a, Carpinus, Ostrya, Hamamelis, Rhus, 

 Sassafras, and Vihurniim prnnifolium, two cultivated trees that 

 have grown wild, and one that is practically extinct, Castanea, and 



* Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club, 47: 21-33. Feb. 1920. 



73 



