QAMLiBN 



TORREYA 



Vol. 28 No. 2 



March-April, 1928 



revege:tatio\ of beech-maple areas in the 

 douglas lake region* 



Marjorie L. Woollett and Dorothy Siglek 



The Douglas Lake region, Cheboygan Co., Michigan, lies in a 

 transition zone between the northeastern coniferous forests and 

 the central deciduous forests. There are many well-drained 

 ridges or moraines in this region that are or have recently been 

 covered by a virgin beech-maple forest. f 



Typical trees are: Acer sacchantm, Betiila liitea, Fagiis grandi- 

 foliu, Tilia glabra and Ulmus americana. Where trees have 

 fallen, opportunity is given to the many seedlings which soon 

 fill such open places to replace the old trees. Most prominent 

 among the few shrubs in the beech-maple forests are Samhiicus 

 racemosa, Rihes cynoshati, and Lonicera canadensis. Of the 

 ground plants, the first or vernal cycle is composed largely of 

 bulbous plants or plants from rootstocks, Viola canadensis, 

 Allium Iricoccum, Bicuculla canadensis, Bicuculla ciicidlaria, 

 Erythroninm albidum, Trillium grandiflorum, Polygonatum bi- 

 florum, Vagnera racemosa, and Hepatica acutiloba. This vernal 

 display is by far the most dense of any for there is little shade in 

 the forest when these plants bloom. They generally die down 

 after blooming and a few weeks later no trace of them may be 

 seen above ground. The second cycle is composed chiefly of 

 broad, thin-leaved shade plants. Here are found Aralia niidi- 

 caulis, Geranium roberiianum, Geum rivale, and Ranunculus 

 abortivus. The third cycle is composed of a fall flora many 

 members of which are composites such as species of Aster and 

 Solidago. 



Only one or two virgin forests now remain because of burning 

 or lumbering. However many of the destroyed areas are now 

 being reforested. 



* The work upon which this paper is based was done at the Biological Station 

 of the University of Michigan under the direction of Professor Frank C. Gates. 



t Gleason, H. A. The structure of the Maple-Beech Association in Northern 

 Michigan. Papers Mich. Acad. Sci. Arts & Letters, 4: 285-296. 1924. 



