What struck me the most when I first arrived at the Oconee Forest Park was the sparse pine population. These days most of my exposure to forests is driving up and down 316 and Buford highway - which can sometimes lead to the mistaken impression that northern Georgia is covered mostly in pine trees.
Once over that, my general impression of the landscape is that it is hilly, dominated by red clay (except for road surfaces and other areas where it looked as though gravel and topsoil had been trucked in) and populated dominantly by tall but rather slender hardwoods. In the less disturbed parts of the forest down the walking trails away from the road there seemed to be relatively little diversity beyond the trees. There were some vines and tall evergreen shrubs but nothing much between the forest floor and the canopy. I took this to be older forest. Differentiable areas of plant population in this part of the forest seemed mainly limited to the stream beds and other small drainage gullies. In these areas there were many more green shrubs, vines, and other smaller plants, causing these areas to be much more overgrown because of the ready availability of water and the difficulty the larger trees seemed to have growing in the immediate vicinity (many of them seemed to have fallen over as the banks gave under them).
The areas by the road were much more overgrown with very young trees and dense shrubs, and occasionally tall grasses, and the border between the park and the railroad/building complexes was clearly defined by a line of tall pines. Similarly the area by the pond was bordered with grasses and young pines which leads me to believe the area has been recently disturbed.
As it is winter it was easy to distinguish pines and other conifers since the canopy is fairly bare and they are easily distinguishable. As far as other trees I could look at the bark, but I don't know enough to really ID anything by that. If it were spring or summer I would look at the flowers and leaves.
I took my run to the Oconee Forest Park on Friday, enjoying the run and being able to observe nature at the same time. It is an interesting landscape to run through, but I had to be especially careful on the narrow trails. Tree roots and rocks constantly jut out from the hard-packed clay soils -- I tripped twice on the rugged terrain. At the far south end of the park, the trails are nicely padded with pine needles. The more carefully maintained trails, consisting of packed gravel, are flatter, wider, and less of a hazard. They interrupted the landscape more, however, and I don't enjoy running on them as much. Besides the trails, other man-made features in the forest included a few buildings, an outdoor structure, and an old stone chimney. I thought the chimney was really neat, indicative of an old house site.
As for the flora, I noticed most trees were deciduous. They were tall and skinny, with branches starting higher up the trunk than what you would see if the trees were alone in the open. You can see through the forest for quite a distance in most places because vegetation is not too dense. Toward the streams and Lake Herrick, plant life becomes thicker and greener and the terrain is steeper. There is the occasional magnolia, but these trees were never very large. I noticed a considerable amount of dead trees laying on the ground, and it was honestly rather ugly. Grassy areas near the challenge course were better maintained, but they stuck out as unnatural modifications to the park. I think we could conclude from these observations that the forest is a newer, secondary forest. I'm glad the park was made into a recreational area -- an intricate network of trails and a leisurely place to enjoy nature.
I have a history with this area for sure. My first time here would have been in 1998 as I ran Cross Country and continued to use the trails even today. I've seen the use (and abuse) of the natural area but all in all it's been a convenient haven for those who wish to get outside. The forest doesn't have any 'huge' trees but there are 'big' ones. I've seen some of the more naturalized areas have nice hardwoods but there are other areas where more invasive species, vines and such, have taken over because they opportunistically took advantage of an open area that might have been created by a falling tree or perhaps human interaction (road opening) There are heavily forested areas and then as you take one trail all of a sudden you are in an 'open' area by the railroad tracks. The dog park is an interesting clearing. There are weedy areas were the forest is trying to come back but its definitely in the beginning stages because there are a lot of weedy/unruly looking patches that don't have any noble species yet. The water looks uninviting and I wonder it's history. I've known that there have been algae blooms that make Lake Herrick un-swimmable but I don't know much about the dog park pond.
It's winter so there are a lot of leaves down from the canopy making it possible to look around for some distance. If it were Spring or Summer there would be more of that sense of privacy as you wind through the trails. The lush/thicker vegetation would envelope you and make it more of a secret journey through the wilderness, which is why I escape to forested areas. I'm aware of the fact that this is not so deep and away, but it is a little taste that is sometimes all you need to make it through the week.
I went on a walk through Oconee Forest Park, beginning at one of the more removed trails from Lake Herrick. It was a nice day, so there were a lot of people, dog walkers, and runners moving about the area.
On the trails, the vegetation I noticed was mainly composed of tall, deciduous trees, and with the guidance of helpful tags, I deduced that most were American Beech, Red Maple, and Sweetgum. I have no doubt there were Oaks as well; I just didn’t see any marked as such. The evergreens I saw were Loblolly Pine and Magnolia, but they sporadically interspersed the landscape and were much fewer in quantity than the formerly listed deciduous trees. Interestingly, many of the American Beeches were still holding on to their characteristic leaves; I wonder how long they will keep them. Given the fact that it’s winter, the low-lying plants and brush around the trees was mainly dormant, with the only green being spots of moss or ferns lining the edges of the trails. As I was walking on a trail, looking at the undergrowth, I noticed a black, charred spot at the root of a tall tree, evidence that someone had lit a fire there at some point.
As I began to leave the forest and get closer to the lake, the land appeared much more manicured, and since I had been paying attention to the landscape, it ended up being quite the shock, as the flat, dormant, planted grass was very different compared to the unruly (albeit most likely controlled) growth of the trees and brush along the trails. Among the tagged trees near the lake were Bald Cypress, Sweetgum, Blackgum, Sourwood, as well as elderberry bushes and Virginia Creeper, all deciduous. There were several small Eastern Hemlocks, which stood out both for being evergreen (almost the only other tree species besides pine that was green), and for being so short and low to the ground. Shrubs of Carolina Laurel Cherry and Chinese Privet were green spots in an otherwise dry and dormant landscape. I found it interesting that there was a large patch of privet very near the lake, as I would think that such an invasive species would be kept more controlled and less visible. Completely separated from the forest, each in their own little, manicured space, were an Eastern Red Cedar and a River Birch, both with wire around the bottom part of their trunks, which I assume was to prevent animals (especially dogs) from damaging the trees.
Crossing the bridge back towards the parking lots, I wandered off a trail at one point to climb on the trunk of a large, fallen tree, and noticed that it was covered in thousands of tiny holes, both the trunk itself, as well all the branches leading off it. Here, I saw a clear indicator of succession, as there was one large Sweetgum surrounded by many smaller, similar-sized trees that were clearly offspring of the parent Sweetgum. In this area, there was also a deep, man-made ravine leading into the creek below, providing a drain for the nearby practice fields and tennis courts of the Intramural Fields. The redness of the Georgia red clay was the most contrasting here, given that fact that runoff water consistently removes the thin layer of brown top soil that covers the clay on other trails.
In the spring and summer, I would expect there to be much more of a canopy in the trails, with trees full of leaves and even flowers. While there were doubtless many insects and other animals moving about, especially on this mild day, I only saw one squirrel. In hotter weather, I would expect to see and hear much more wildlife moving around, including tiny frogs hopping near or along the trails. I would also expect the creek to have more water in it (along with tadpoles and little fish!), and the water level of the lake to be much higher.
Yesterday I scooted over to Oconee Forest Park. It was a rather brisk day. The wind made it quiet chilly when caught full in the face. I was excited for the adventure that lay ahead.
After arriving I began observing my surroundings. I noticed that the place looked highly modified. Ignoring the trimmed fields, as I approached the forest I passed the gravel parking lot. In the forest there are multiple levels of plant ages, though in general I would guess that the whole forest is pretty young. I would guess that it’s mostly a hard wood forest, but further on pass the lake there are some pines. There is a lot of smaller species of what I would describe as vines and shrubby like trees that only grow as tall as half the height of the more mature trees. I think this spot is interesting because it is a forest surround. Along the front you have the fields as I mentioned but to the left there is a lake and to the right there is a railway with housing beyond that, and along the back there’s a road. There’s also a dog park in the middle next to a smaller pound. I think it’s interesting because it seems that certain species prefer the different areas.
In the winter there is a lot of grey and lighter browns. The forest is open and you hear a crunch with every step. It’s bare. In the spring I expect new growth, twigs coming to life. I expect to see fresh new green leaves with new flowers and smells to match. Through to summer I expect the greens to darken and for the canopy to be thick and perfect to escape the heat of the day. To the fall with its shorter days and colder nights, when all the leaves began to fall and the conifers shows their true glory. And then it’s back to winter when the cycle starts again.
I took a nice walk with my roommate through the forest. I was reading the assignment out loud to myself and my roommate hearing part of the assignment started pointing out 3 huge bird's nests at the top of the trees. If it wasn't winter, we probably wouldn't have seen these nests. The landscape of the forest is hilly. There are many places where I saw the land eroded away probably due to deforesting in its early history. The forest seems to be mostly made of hardwoods, most mostly young. The trees rage from around 50 to 80 feet by my "guesstimation" (not that I'm good at that sort of thing). The circumference of the trees seemed to indicate trees less than 100 years old. There were a few pine trees and even more small magnolia trees. Although a close look at one of the magnolias seemed to indicated that it was either diseased, had a parasite, or just not happy with its habitat.
The lower level of the forest had brush and small trees. I saw for sure one holly tree. There was moss, ferns and some different sorts of vines.
The winter made the forest grey, except for the few evergreens. I could tell that there were different types of trees based on different bark textures, not that I knew what was what. In the summer or spring one could look at the leaves and or flowers on the trees and plants. The forest floor was brown littered with fallen leaves and quite a few fallen trees and branches. Some trees were marked with orange tape.
There was the main road that had gravel, and then paths through the forest with bridges, that told of human use. I also found a piece of litter, a tree with many carvings on it (one from 2002 others that were more recent), and an attempt at a tepee. By the creek I could see where the creek had cut into the land and eroded some of the banks.
The soil where I was walking was either red clay or a very sandy or gritty soil. There wasn't much good fertile soil that I found. The soil was damp but it has been rainy lately. I saw either kudzu or ivy witch was on the edge of the road that was starting to climb up trees. I also saw mistletoe.
Today I took my dog up to Oconee Forest to explore with Kim and me. We entered through an opening past the tennis courts. The ground was gravel and the trees in the area appeared to be pretty young, as they didn't have thick stumps. A lot of Sweetgum tree were dropping their prickly fruits (?) all over the forest floor. There were very small Magnolia trees dispersed randomly. There was a valley between the two hill on our right where a creek ran through. We walked further to a fork in the path. We took a path that had moist red clay. Chinese privet is very invasive, which would explain why we saw it for several yards along the path. When we escaped the chinese privet, we started seeing Ivy all over fallen and living trees, many of them being Pin Oaks. After walking a little farther, we went off the beaten path and found a perfectly rectangular clearing. This is obvious human disturbance, possibly the plot for a house or some other kind of University activity (there was also ropes course equipment everywhere). There were small cedars along the pathway, evidence of them being relatively new. We also ran into many Flowering Pear trees, but only in a certain area.
There were a lot of vines growing up the trees, many of them being on the giant white oaks, which are probably among the oldest in the forest. We ran across several plaques that names the species of trees. Some of these plaqued trees were the Sparkleberry tree, and the Royal Paulownia Tree. As we got closer to the lake, the quantity of Hickory trees (pignut hickory)increased, leaving hickory nuts all over the ground. There were scary looking Greenbriars on various trees around the lake. Also close to the lake, there were River Birches with thick stumps and roots.
It's winter, so obviously most of the trees were bare, with the exceptions of some cedars, pines and the magnolias. Come Spring, I expect to be seeing many more fruits, leaves and flowers. More animals will come with the new blooms, too. During the summer, I expect to see less flowers and fruits than the spring, but lots and lots of green.
I occasionally go running in the Oconee Forest, but that time isn't generally conducive to paying attention to my surroundings. When I visited this weekend, I definitely tried to pay more attention.
With the amount of upkeep and maintenance the university does elsewhere on campus, I had expected more new growth plants. To my surprise, there were many more hardwood trees than pines and other evergreens. The pines that did occur definitely seemed to be around areas that had been more disturbed by humans, like walkways and clearings. The undergrowth had some small bushes and trees. The hardwoods were not ancient, but seemed well established, sort of a medium sized tree.Like the rest of our area, the soil seems to be mostly the well recognized red clay.
Since it's winter, it was easier to see further into the forest, but not so easy to identify plants without leaves. Luckily, labels are helpfully provided. I saw some Magnolia trees, and Sweetgum trees, ivy, and some mistletoe. In seasons other than winter, leaves and other more distinguishable features of the plants would prove helpful to gather more information about the succession of the area. I think winter helped to give a very immediate sense that it is an area past the new growth stage of succession, with hardwoods having mostly taken over.
Upon first entering the forest, the multiple layers become obvious. There is a high canopy of pines and oaks which are the oldest trees. Beneath this top layer is a second layer containing trees and plants which are a bit younger like one tree in particular which I’m not sure exactly what it is, but looks like a young magnolia. The youngest layer contains smaller trees and brush. There were a vast number of species and it seemed to me that this forest is very diverse, perhaps because of its affiliation with UGA and so that it can be a teaching tool for the Warnell School of Forestry. In winter, you must look a little harder to be able to tell what kind of tree you are looking at since most of the leaves have fallen off. I looked at the bark and the seed pods to be able to identify species. In fall, a good indicator is leaf shape and color and in summer it would be leaf shape, bark and inflorescence. I noticed that a lot of the soil was the typical red clay you see everywhere here, but not all of it. There was a very fine, gray almost dusty soil beneath a huge fallen tree which I found particularly interesting. Human occupation was evident in the manmade bridges, paths and information features throughout the forest. Invasive species in the forest included kudzu and Japanese honeysuckle. I also noticed that there was a bunch of vividly hued green moss which was moist to the touch…I wonder if it is always moist like that, or if it had just retained some of the rain we got recently?
Anna and I went to the forest today (her dog Gus came too!!) and had fun learning about our local landscape. Just from looking at the trees we could tell which parts of the forest were oldest. There was a great amount of deciduous trees with large trunks and less underbrush. In the younger parts of the forest there were more pines mixed in with the deciduous trees. A large stretch of the path was overrun with Chinese privet, laden with berries ready to spread the plants even more. There was a ton of Greenbriar and some cedar, as well as other shrubs that had green leaves. The soil was sandy and rocky in some places, and of course we encountered red clay also. It will be fun to go back in the spring and summer to see the leaves and fruits on the trees and bushes, which will help us to identify more than we could today. We enjoyed the little identification signs that were scattered throughout the forest, helping us see things like Pignut Hickory, (and there were hickory nuts on the ground all around the trees) Smallflower Pawpaw, Flowering Pear, and Rusty Blackhaw.
This area is one of my favorite on campus, and thinking about it in a different way is welcome. Especially in winter, it's really easy to see the different canopy layers like you asked us to. I saw a lot of pines in the distance, and the ground is soft with needles. I didn't see lots of old growth hardwoods, and this was expected because I simply assume that this park hasn't been here longer for 30 or so years. Lack of leaves, but I still know that sweetgum is around because of the fruit and because I am more familiar with the bark from inoculating mushroom logs of sweetgum.
Less obvious is the change in species composition in geographically different parts of the park. For example, the part closest to the practice fields have different species- more shrubs, woody vines, and pines. The part of the park close to the loop, where the trail snakes on a slope, has less lower/middle canopy brush and more tall trees shading the ground. Of course, right next to that part of the trail is all brush because it gets cut back every so often, in the spring I believe. There are huge differences in spring, summer and fall. Spring smells sweet and the brush blooms with tiny little flowers. Summer is densely green, less flowers. Fall is all about the squirrels.
This park was an interesting place to look at forest succession. The closer you are to the practice fields the more obvious the human presence is as well as the effect on the forest. Close to the fields are more shrubs and grasses and the more you get into the actual forest you see how the full forest has grown up and how the vegetation is the result of the amount of sunlight that reaches the floor. One of the other aspects I noticed is that near the edge of the forest there are a few ornamental trees that were planted. These are not necessarily natural species and you can see how humans have impacted the forest. I also noticed a difference in the plants closer to the lake. There is a lot more moisture in the soil and I saw more mosses. Since it is winter, there were few leaves on the trees but I imagine in Spring there will be leaves covering the canopy. There was more sun reaching the floor of the forest now than there would be then. In addition, I imagine many of the trees would be more fragrant in other seasons.
I convinced my boyfriend to drive me out to the Oconee Forest Park this weekend. As a person with little to no prior background to botany, I found his presence - he, an indoorsy Jewish boy from the suburbs of DC - to be a great source of confidence as I acted like I knew way more than he - or I - did. Both of us have the untrained eye of armchair humanities majors, viewing trails in the winter as a bunch of dead brown things on top of other dead brown things, sometimes with a smattering green stuff. When I mentioned that I didn't know if I'd be able to detect markers of forest succession on my own, he responded, "Just say that you saw some."
We first walked through the trails, I uneasily surveying the trees, Mat dreading the idea of tripping through the underbrush. The trails seem to provide enough of a stable environment for the deciduous trees to reach a respectable height, and the occasional waxy-leafed, scraggly evergreen can be seen. I jumped at the scattering of placards like they were signs from God. (Wild Azalea, Black Cherry, Burr Oak. The Wild Azalea was beginning to sprout buds, and the Burr Oak was already produce small blue fruit. Weird, weird winter - I think?)
After about 20 minutes of stumbling through the trails, I coaxed Mat to follow me through some thorny underbrush into the open clearing of the dog park. It's paved with some pretty people-friendly gravel, which contains a lot of the underbrush between fences and in islands. A natural fence of sorts separates it from the murky brown pond, which made us totally uneasy. We then we hit the motherlode: six or seven plants arranged in two rows, all bearing placards, including Chalk Maple, Red Bay, and the painful-looking Devil's Walking Stick. They were spaced evenly and were sprouting out of grass, sculpted by the hand of man. I think. I'm pretty sure.
I don't think I'd be able to detect succession vegetation in the Oconee Forest Park unassisted, but I suspect the trails contain climax vegetation, the dog park secondary. It would make sense, anyway, but then again, what do we know? In the words of Mat, "You wanna know how I feel about dead leaves?" Pensive pause. "They'll never hurt anyone again."
At first, walking into this forested area I thought that it must be new growth forest because it seemed that small shrubbery was taking hold of the understory but on closer inspection I realized that most of the understory brush was Privet which is notoriously able to withstand poor conditions such as a lack of light coming through the canopy. I didn't find many other plants in the understory which leads me to believe the forest is older than I originally suspected. Also, many of the trees off of the beaten path are much taller and girthier than those which are very close to the heavily trafficked path so I think the area closer to the path must have been cleared recently. I did see what I think are magnolia trees growing up through the understory (I think they were magnolias because they had dark green waxy broad leaves) and this surprised me. It is obvious that the area near the weird pond has been cleared recently because it is mostly shrubbery surrounding it which is not ideal and will probably lead to the erosion of the banks.
The Oconee Forest Park has definite signs of succession likely due to human interaction with the forested area. Along the edges of the forest, where it meets the IM fields or the roads on the other side, there is much more young growth forest with more shrubs and pines. One can also see this pattern near the trails due to the high traffic and semi-regular maintenance done to keep the trails clear. However, once you go a little further in, you notice the taller, bigger hardwoods that begin to dominate, suggesting that this forest is an older growth forest, but not ancient judging by the size of the trees. What happened before then is hard to tell, likely logging or some other human disturbance. Other than the handy plaques place near the trials, it is difficult to ID many of these trees, due to the lack of leaves during the winter months. However, it will be much easier once spring rolls around, and leaves and flowers and seeds begin to sprout anew. The forest was very moist, but that is likely due to the recent rain. However, as there is pretty good canopy coverage even during the winter, I would guess it stays fairly damp most of the year. The soil is mostly the infamous Georgia red clay, with some different soils near the trails and fields, likely brought in by UGA workers. Human travel outside of the trials themselves must be fairly light, because the undergrowth, mostly briars and small scrubby shrubs, is thick enough in most places to hinder people's movements. There are some evergreens in amongst the hardwoods including some pines, cedars, and magnolias. There green is a welcome sight amid the otherwise brown hues cast by the deciduous trees.
Unfortunately I was unable to visit the Oconee Forest Park during the daytime since I was working in South Carolina from Thursday night until Sunday night. I did however take a walk over to the park when I got back to Athens at around 9 pm Sunday night. It was definitely difficult to observe the flora with nothing but a flashlight, even more so difficult to navigate the trails without tripping over the roots of trees and rocks that litter the narrow footpaths. I have been to this park in the past to go fishing on lake Herrick so I knew my way around somewhat; but only on the path that follows the outline of the lake. There are definite signs of human intervention at the park, first and most obvious would be the docks on the lake and the tennis courts etc in the immediate area. The paths are somewhat maintained though there were several downed trees on the paths, but it was clear that these trees had recently fallen, probably during the strong winds we had over the weekend. From what I could see by the light of my flashlight the trees were primarily deciduous, most of them having shed their leaves for the winter. I remember during the spring and summer time when I fished this lake the canopy was thick and the trails were shady and cool. I remember this well because I spent most of my time sitting on a particular rock on one of the trails because the fishing was terrible in lake Herrick. I noticed the soil type when i returned home because of what was on my shoes. It is, of course, the red clay that dominates the georgia landscape.
I will try and make time to revisit the park during the daytime at some point this week so I can get a better view of the vegetation in the forest.
Sorry this is so late! I had to go to San Francisco on Friday for work, and didn't get back until mid morning on Monday. I went out to Lake Herrick this morning.
There's a power cut at Lake Herrick that I have stomped through many times on one Biology or Ecology lab trip or another. We studied succession there many times, especially the concepts of edge effects (how the borders of a disturbance area can change the composition of the community near, say, a power cut) and certain soil characteristics (soil pH under pine stands can be lower because of the acidity of the needles, but erosion is more evident in and around gaps where runoff is less obstructed by flora). In Lake Herrick's the power cut, there are low grasses and the stumps of shrubs or invasive plants like privet, kept relatively in check by a maintenance crew.
With the lake on your right, looking up the slope of the mountain, you can see that near the power cut is a distinct stand of pine. To the left of the power cut is a space of forest almost entirely dominated by skinny pines, privet, and dead vines, and beyond that a road. This area was probably disturbed during the development of the area. But to the right, the deeper into the forest you go, the more clear the understory is. Pines are almost completely absent, suggesting that this part of the forest is older and more established. On a sunny day and from afar, this is so obvious. The deciduous trees have lost their leaves in the winter, making it easy to see the dramatic the separation between pines near disturbance gaps, and making it easy to see how relatively uncluttered the forest floor is in the older stands. Later succession communities have more established competitor trees, which create fewer opportunities for smaller plants in the understory, especially in the growing season.
Also, the trail in the power cut is a rusty brown color, where clay particles are exposed after years of erosion. In any season, the composition of the organic matter (or the lack of organic matter) on top of the soil can tell you about the kind of community above. Clay and dead grasses dominate the power cut area, but pine needles cover the ground in the early succession areas. Deeper into the forest, the composition changes to a thick layer of recognizable leaf litter.
What struck me the most when I first arrived at the Oconee Forest Park was the sparse pine population. These days most of my exposure to forests is driving up and down 316 and Buford highway - which can sometimes lead to the mistaken impression that northern Georgia is covered mostly in pine trees.
ReplyDeleteOnce over that, my general impression of the landscape is that it is hilly, dominated by red clay (except for road surfaces and other areas where it looked as though gravel and topsoil had been trucked in) and populated dominantly by tall but rather slender hardwoods. In the less disturbed parts of the forest down the walking trails away from the road there seemed to be relatively little diversity beyond the trees. There were some vines and tall evergreen shrubs but nothing much between the forest floor and the canopy. I took this to be older forest. Differentiable areas of plant population in this part of the forest seemed mainly limited to the stream beds and other small drainage gullies. In these areas there were many more green shrubs, vines, and other smaller plants, causing these areas to be much more overgrown because of the ready availability of water and the difficulty the larger trees seemed to have growing in the immediate vicinity (many of them seemed to have fallen over as the banks gave under them).
The areas by the road were much more overgrown with very young trees and dense shrubs, and occasionally tall grasses, and the border between the park and the railroad/building complexes was clearly defined by a line of tall pines. Similarly the area by the pond was bordered with grasses and young pines which leads me to believe the area has been recently disturbed.
As it is winter it was easy to distinguish pines and other conifers since the canopy is fairly bare and they are easily distinguishable. As far as other trees I could look at the bark, but I don't know enough to really ID anything by that. If it were spring or summer I would look at the flowers and leaves.
I took my run to the Oconee Forest Park on Friday, enjoying the run and being able to observe nature at the same time. It is an interesting landscape to run through, but I had to be especially careful on the narrow trails. Tree roots and rocks constantly jut out from the hard-packed clay soils -- I tripped twice on the rugged terrain. At the far south end of the park, the trails are nicely padded with pine needles. The more carefully maintained trails, consisting of packed gravel, are flatter, wider, and less of a hazard. They interrupted the landscape more, however, and I don't enjoy running on them as much. Besides the trails, other man-made features in the forest included a few buildings, an outdoor structure, and an old stone chimney. I thought the chimney was really neat, indicative of an old house site.
ReplyDeleteAs for the flora, I noticed most trees were deciduous. They were tall and skinny, with branches starting higher up the trunk than what you would see if the trees were alone in the open. You can see through the forest for quite a distance in most places because vegetation is not too dense. Toward the streams and Lake Herrick, plant life becomes thicker and greener and the terrain is steeper. There is the occasional magnolia, but these trees were never very large. I noticed a considerable amount of dead trees laying on the ground, and it was honestly rather ugly. Grassy areas near the challenge course were better maintained, but they stuck out as unnatural modifications to the park. I think we could conclude from these observations that the forest is a newer, secondary forest. I'm glad the park was made into a recreational area -- an intricate network of trails and a leisurely place to enjoy nature.
I have a history with this area for sure. My first time here would have been in 1998 as I ran Cross Country and continued to use the trails even today. I've seen the use (and abuse) of the natural area but all in all it's been a convenient haven for those who wish to get outside. The forest doesn't have any 'huge' trees but there are 'big' ones. I've seen some of the more naturalized areas have nice hardwoods but there are other areas where more invasive species, vines and such, have taken over because they opportunistically took advantage of an open area that might have been created by a falling tree or perhaps human interaction (road opening) There are heavily forested areas and then as you take one trail all of a sudden you are in an 'open' area by the railroad tracks. The dog park is an interesting clearing. There are weedy areas were the forest is trying to come back but its definitely in the beginning stages because there are a lot of weedy/unruly looking patches that don't have any noble species yet. The water looks uninviting and I wonder it's history. I've known that there have been algae blooms that make Lake Herrick un-swimmable but I don't know much about the dog park pond.
ReplyDeleteIt's winter so there are a lot of leaves down from the canopy making it possible to look around for some distance. If it were Spring or Summer there would be more of that sense of privacy as you wind through the trails. The lush/thicker vegetation would envelope you and make it more of a secret journey through the wilderness, which is why I escape to forested areas. I'm aware of the fact that this is not so deep and away, but it is a little taste that is sometimes all you need to make it through the week.
I went on a walk through Oconee Forest Park, beginning at one of the more removed trails from Lake Herrick. It was a nice day, so there were a lot of people, dog walkers, and runners moving about the area.
ReplyDeleteOn the trails, the vegetation I noticed was mainly composed of tall, deciduous trees, and with the guidance of helpful tags, I deduced that most were American Beech, Red Maple, and Sweetgum. I have no doubt there were Oaks as well; I just didn’t see any marked as such. The evergreens I saw were Loblolly Pine and Magnolia, but they sporadically interspersed the landscape and were much fewer in quantity than the formerly listed deciduous trees. Interestingly, many of the American Beeches were still holding on to their characteristic leaves; I wonder how long they will keep them. Given the fact that it’s winter, the low-lying plants and brush around the trees was mainly dormant, with the only green being spots of moss or ferns lining the edges of the trails. As I was walking on a trail, looking at the undergrowth, I noticed a black, charred spot at the root of a tall tree, evidence that someone had lit a fire there at some point.
As I began to leave the forest and get closer to the lake, the land appeared much more manicured, and since I had been paying attention to the landscape, it ended up being quite the shock, as the flat, dormant, planted grass was very different compared to the unruly (albeit most likely controlled) growth of the trees and brush along the trails. Among the tagged trees near the lake were Bald Cypress, Sweetgum, Blackgum, Sourwood, as well as elderberry bushes and Virginia Creeper, all deciduous. There were several small Eastern Hemlocks, which stood out both for being evergreen (almost the only other tree species besides pine that was green), and for being so short and low to the ground. Shrubs of Carolina Laurel Cherry and Chinese Privet were green spots in an otherwise dry and dormant landscape. I found it interesting that there was a large patch of privet very near the lake, as I would think that such an invasive species would be kept more controlled and less visible. Completely separated from the forest, each in their own little, manicured space, were an Eastern Red Cedar and a River Birch, both with wire around the bottom part of their trunks, which I assume was to prevent animals (especially dogs) from damaging the trees.
Crossing the bridge back towards the parking lots, I wandered off a trail at one point to climb on the trunk of a large, fallen tree, and noticed that it was covered in thousands of tiny holes, both the trunk itself, as well all the branches leading off it. Here, I saw a clear indicator of succession, as there was one large Sweetgum surrounded by many smaller, similar-sized trees that were clearly offspring of the parent Sweetgum. In this area, there was also a deep, man-made ravine leading into the creek below, providing a drain for the nearby practice fields and tennis courts of the Intramural Fields. The redness of the Georgia red clay was the most contrasting here, given that fact that runoff water consistently removes the thin layer of brown top soil that covers the clay on other trails.
In the spring and summer, I would expect there to be much more of a canopy in the trails, with trees full of leaves and even flowers. While there were doubtless many insects and other animals moving about, especially on this mild day, I only saw one squirrel. In hotter weather, I would expect to see and hear much more wildlife moving around, including tiny frogs hopping near or along the trails. I would also expect the creek to have more water in it (along with tadpoles and little fish!), and the water level of the lake to be much higher.
Yesterday I scooted over to Oconee Forest Park. It was a rather brisk day. The wind made it quiet chilly when caught full in the face. I was excited for the adventure that lay ahead.
ReplyDeleteAfter arriving I began observing my surroundings. I noticed that the place looked highly modified. Ignoring the trimmed fields, as I approached the forest I passed the gravel parking lot. In the forest there are multiple levels of plant ages, though in general I would guess that the whole forest is pretty young. I would guess that it’s mostly a hard wood forest, but further on pass the lake there are some pines. There is a lot of smaller species of what I would describe as vines and shrubby like trees that only grow as tall as half the height of the more mature trees. I think this spot is interesting because it is a forest surround. Along the front you have the fields as I mentioned but to the left there is a lake and to the right there is a railway with housing beyond that, and along the back there’s a road. There’s also a dog park in the middle next to a smaller pound. I think it’s interesting because it seems that certain species prefer the different areas.
In the winter there is a lot of grey and lighter browns. The forest is open and you hear a crunch with every step. It’s bare. In the spring I expect new growth, twigs coming to life. I expect to see fresh new green leaves with new flowers and smells to match. Through to summer I expect the greens to darken and for the canopy to be thick and perfect to escape the heat of the day. To the fall with its shorter days and colder nights, when all the leaves began to fall and the conifers shows their true glory. And then it’s back to winter when the cycle starts again.
I took a nice walk with my roommate through the forest. I was reading the assignment out loud to myself and my roommate hearing part of the assignment started pointing out 3 huge bird's nests at the top of the trees. If it wasn't winter, we probably wouldn't have seen these nests.
ReplyDeleteThe landscape of the forest is hilly. There are many places where I saw the land eroded away probably due to deforesting in its early history. The forest seems to be mostly made of hardwoods, most mostly young. The trees rage from around 50 to 80 feet by my "guesstimation" (not that I'm good at that sort of thing). The circumference of the trees seemed to indicate trees less than 100 years old. There were a few pine trees and even more small magnolia trees. Although a close look at one of the magnolias seemed to indicated that it was either diseased, had a parasite, or just not happy with its habitat.
The lower level of the forest had brush and small trees. I saw for sure one holly tree. There was moss, ferns and some different sorts of vines.
The winter made the forest grey, except for the few evergreens. I could tell that there were different types of trees based on different bark textures, not that I knew what was what. In the summer or spring one could look at the leaves and or flowers on the trees and plants. The forest floor was brown littered with fallen leaves and quite a few fallen trees and branches. Some trees were marked with orange tape.
There was the main road that had gravel, and then paths through the forest with bridges, that told of human use. I also found a piece of litter, a tree with many carvings on it (one from 2002 others that were more recent), and an attempt at a tepee. By the creek I could see where the creek had cut into the land and eroded some of the banks.
The soil where I was walking was either red clay or a very sandy or gritty soil. There wasn't much good fertile soil that I found. The soil was damp but it has been rainy lately. I saw either kudzu or ivy witch was on the edge of the road that was starting to climb up trees. I also saw mistletoe.
Today I took my dog up to Oconee Forest to explore with Kim and me. We entered through an opening past the tennis courts. The ground was gravel and the trees in the area appeared to be pretty young, as they didn't have thick stumps. A lot of Sweetgum tree were dropping their prickly fruits (?) all over the forest floor. There were very small Magnolia trees dispersed randomly. There was a valley between the two hill on our right where a creek ran through. We walked further to a fork in the path. We took a path that had moist red clay. Chinese privet is very invasive, which would explain why we saw it for several yards along the path. When we escaped the chinese privet, we started seeing Ivy all over fallen and living trees, many of them being Pin Oaks. After walking a little farther, we went off the beaten path and found a perfectly rectangular clearing. This is obvious human disturbance, possibly the plot for a house or some other kind of University activity (there was also ropes course equipment everywhere). There were small cedars along the pathway, evidence of them being relatively new. We also ran into many Flowering Pear trees, but only in a certain area.
ReplyDeleteThere were a lot of vines growing up the trees, many of them being on the giant white oaks, which are probably among the oldest in the forest. We ran across several plaques that names the species of trees. Some of these plaqued trees were the Sparkleberry tree, and the Royal Paulownia Tree. As we got closer to the lake, the quantity of Hickory trees (pignut hickory)increased, leaving hickory nuts all over the ground. There were scary looking Greenbriars on various trees around the lake. Also close to the lake, there were River Birches with thick stumps and roots.
It's winter, so obviously most of the trees were bare, with the exceptions of some cedars, pines and the magnolias. Come Spring, I expect to be seeing many more fruits, leaves and flowers. More animals will come with the new blooms, too. During the summer, I expect to see less flowers and fruits than the spring, but lots and lots of green.
I occasionally go running in the Oconee Forest, but that time isn't generally conducive to paying attention to my surroundings. When I visited this weekend, I definitely tried to pay more attention.
ReplyDeleteWith the amount of upkeep and maintenance the university does elsewhere on campus, I had expected more new growth plants. To my surprise, there were many more hardwood trees than pines and other evergreens. The pines that did occur definitely seemed to be around areas that had been more disturbed by humans, like walkways and clearings. The undergrowth had some small bushes and trees. The hardwoods were not ancient, but seemed well established, sort of a medium sized tree.Like the rest of our area, the soil seems to be mostly the well recognized red clay.
Since it's winter, it was easier to see further into the forest, but not so easy to identify plants without leaves. Luckily, labels are helpfully provided. I saw some Magnolia trees, and Sweetgum trees, ivy, and some mistletoe. In seasons other than winter, leaves and other more distinguishable features of the plants would prove helpful to gather more information about the succession of the area. I think winter helped to give a very immediate sense that it is an area past the new growth stage of succession, with hardwoods having mostly taken over.
Upon first entering the forest, the multiple layers become obvious. There is a high canopy of pines and oaks which are the oldest trees. Beneath this top layer is a second layer containing trees and plants which are a bit younger like one tree in particular which I’m not sure exactly what it is, but looks like a young magnolia. The youngest layer contains smaller trees and brush. There were a vast number of species and it seemed to me that this forest is very diverse, perhaps because of its affiliation with UGA and so that it can be a teaching tool for the Warnell School of Forestry. In winter, you must look a little harder to be able to tell what kind of tree you are looking at since most of the leaves have fallen off. I looked at the bark and the seed pods to be able to identify species. In fall, a good indicator is leaf shape and color and in summer it would be leaf shape, bark and inflorescence. I noticed that a lot of the soil was the typical red clay you see everywhere here, but not all of it. There was a very fine, gray almost dusty soil beneath a huge fallen tree which I found particularly interesting. Human occupation was evident in the manmade bridges, paths and information features throughout the forest. Invasive species in the forest included kudzu and Japanese honeysuckle. I also noticed that there was a bunch of vividly hued green moss which was moist to the touch…I wonder if it is always moist like that, or if it had just retained some of the rain we got recently?
ReplyDeleteAnna and I went to the forest today (her dog Gus came too!!) and had fun learning about our local landscape. Just from looking at the trees we could tell which parts of the forest were oldest. There was a great amount of deciduous trees with large trunks and less underbrush. In the younger parts of the forest there were more pines mixed in with the deciduous trees. A large stretch of the path was overrun with Chinese privet, laden with berries ready to spread the plants even more. There was a ton of Greenbriar and some cedar, as well as other shrubs that had green leaves.
ReplyDeleteThe soil was sandy and rocky in some places, and of course we encountered red clay also. It will be fun to go back in the spring and summer to see the leaves and fruits on the trees and bushes, which will help us to identify more than we could today. We enjoyed the little identification signs that were scattered throughout the forest, helping us see things like Pignut Hickory, (and there were hickory nuts on the ground all around the trees) Smallflower Pawpaw, Flowering Pear, and Rusty Blackhaw.
This area is one of my favorite on campus, and thinking about it in a different way is welcome. Especially in winter, it's really easy to see the different canopy layers like you asked us to. I saw a lot of pines in the distance, and the ground is soft with needles. I didn't see lots of old growth hardwoods, and this was expected because I simply assume that this park hasn't been here longer for 30 or so years. Lack of leaves, but I still know that sweetgum is around because of the fruit and because I am more familiar with the bark from inoculating mushroom logs of sweetgum.
ReplyDeleteLess obvious is the change in species composition in geographically different parts of the park. For example, the part closest to the practice fields have different species- more shrubs, woody vines, and pines. The part of the park close to the loop, where the trail snakes on a slope, has less lower/middle canopy brush and more tall trees shading the ground. Of course, right next to that part of the trail is all brush because it gets cut back every so often, in the spring I believe.
There are huge differences in spring, summer and fall. Spring smells sweet and the brush blooms with tiny little flowers. Summer is densely green, less flowers. Fall is all about the squirrels.
This park was an interesting place to look at forest succession. The closer you are to the practice fields the more obvious the human presence is as well as the effect on the forest. Close to the fields are more shrubs and grasses and the more you get into the actual forest you see how the full forest has grown up and how the vegetation is the result of the amount of sunlight that reaches the floor. One of the other aspects I noticed is that near the edge of the forest there are a few ornamental trees that were planted. These are not necessarily natural species and you can see how humans have impacted the forest. I also noticed a difference in the plants closer to the lake. There is a lot more moisture in the soil and I saw more mosses. Since it is winter, there were few leaves on the trees but I imagine in Spring there will be leaves covering the canopy. There was more sun reaching the floor of the forest now than there would be then. In addition, I imagine many of the trees would be more fragrant in other seasons.
ReplyDeleteI convinced my boyfriend to drive me out to the Oconee Forest Park this weekend. As a person with little to no prior background to botany, I found his presence - he, an indoorsy Jewish boy from the suburbs of DC - to be a great source of confidence as I acted like I knew way more than he - or I - did. Both of us have the untrained eye of armchair humanities majors, viewing trails in the winter as a bunch of dead brown things on top of other dead brown things, sometimes with a smattering green stuff. When I mentioned that I didn't know if I'd be able to detect markers of forest succession on my own, he responded, "Just say that you saw some."
ReplyDeleteWe first walked through the trails, I uneasily surveying the trees, Mat dreading the idea of tripping through the underbrush. The trails seem to provide enough of a stable environment for the deciduous trees to reach a respectable height, and the occasional waxy-leafed, scraggly evergreen can be seen. I jumped at the scattering of placards like they were signs from God. (Wild Azalea, Black Cherry, Burr Oak. The Wild Azalea was beginning to sprout buds, and the Burr Oak was already produce small blue fruit. Weird, weird winter - I think?)
After about 20 minutes of stumbling through the trails, I coaxed Mat to follow me through some thorny underbrush into the open clearing of the dog park. It's paved with some pretty people-friendly gravel, which contains a lot of the underbrush between fences and in islands. A natural fence of sorts separates it from the murky brown pond, which made us totally uneasy. We then we hit the motherlode: six or seven plants arranged in two rows, all bearing placards, including Chalk Maple, Red Bay, and the painful-looking Devil's Walking Stick. They were spaced evenly and were sprouting out of grass, sculpted by the hand of man. I think. I'm pretty sure.
I don't think I'd be able to detect succession vegetation in the Oconee Forest Park unassisted, but I suspect the trails contain climax vegetation, the dog park secondary. It would make sense, anyway, but then again, what do we know? In the words of Mat, "You wanna know how I feel about dead leaves?" Pensive pause. "They'll never hurt anyone again."
At first, walking into this forested area I thought that it must be new growth forest because it seemed that small shrubbery was taking hold of the understory but on closer inspection I realized that most of the understory brush was Privet which is notoriously able to withstand poor conditions such as a lack of light coming through the canopy. I didn't find many other plants in the understory which leads me to believe the forest is older than I originally suspected. Also, many of the trees off of the beaten path are much taller and girthier than those which are very close to the heavily trafficked path so I think the area closer to the path must have been cleared recently. I did see what I think are magnolia trees growing up through the understory (I think they were magnolias because they had dark green waxy broad leaves) and this surprised me. It is obvious that the area near the weird pond has been cleared recently because it is mostly shrubbery surrounding it which is not ideal and will probably lead to the erosion of the banks.
ReplyDeleteThe Oconee Forest Park has definite signs of succession likely due to human interaction with the forested area. Along the edges of the forest, where it meets the IM fields or the roads on the other side, there is much more young growth forest with more shrubs and pines. One can also see this pattern near the trails due to the high traffic and semi-regular maintenance done to keep the trails clear. However, once you go a little further in, you notice the taller, bigger hardwoods that begin to dominate, suggesting that this forest is an older growth forest, but not ancient judging by the size of the trees. What happened before then is hard to tell, likely logging or some other human disturbance. Other than the handy plaques place near the trials, it is difficult to ID many of these trees, due to the lack of leaves during the winter months. However, it will be much easier once spring rolls around, and leaves and flowers and seeds begin to sprout anew. The forest was very moist, but that is likely due to the recent rain. However, as there is pretty good canopy coverage even during the winter, I would guess it stays fairly damp most of the year. The soil is mostly the infamous Georgia red clay, with some different soils near the trails and fields, likely brought in by UGA workers. Human travel outside of the trials themselves must be fairly light, because the undergrowth, mostly briars and small scrubby shrubs, is thick enough in most places to hinder people's movements. There are some evergreens in amongst the hardwoods including some pines, cedars, and magnolias. There green is a welcome sight amid the otherwise brown hues cast by the deciduous trees.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I was unable to visit the Oconee Forest Park during the daytime since I was working in South Carolina from Thursday night until Sunday night. I did however take a walk over to the park when I got back to Athens at around 9 pm Sunday night. It was definitely difficult to observe the flora with nothing but a flashlight, even more so difficult to navigate the trails without tripping over the roots of trees and rocks that litter the narrow footpaths. I have been to this park in the past to go fishing on lake Herrick so I knew my way around somewhat; but only on the path that follows the outline of the lake. There are definite signs of human intervention at the park, first and most obvious would be the docks on the lake and the tennis courts etc in the immediate area. The paths are somewhat maintained though there were several downed trees on the paths, but it was clear that these trees had recently fallen, probably during the strong winds we had over the weekend. From what I could see by the light of my flashlight the trees were primarily deciduous, most of them having shed their leaves for the winter. I remember during the spring and summer time when I fished this lake the canopy was thick and the trails were shady and cool. I remember this well because I spent most of my time sitting on a particular rock on one of the trails because the fishing was terrible in lake Herrick. I noticed the soil type when i returned home because of what was on my shoes. It is, of course, the red clay that dominates the georgia landscape.
ReplyDeleteI will try and make time to revisit the park during the daytime at some point this week so I can get a better view of the vegetation in the forest.
Sorry this is so late! I had to go to San Francisco on Friday for work, and didn't get back until mid morning on Monday. I went out to Lake Herrick this morning.
ReplyDeleteThere's a power cut at Lake Herrick that I have stomped through many times on one Biology or Ecology lab trip or another. We studied succession there many times, especially the concepts of edge effects (how the borders of a disturbance area can change the composition of the community near, say, a power cut) and certain soil characteristics (soil pH under pine stands can be lower because of the acidity of the needles, but erosion is more evident in and around gaps where runoff is less obstructed by flora). In Lake Herrick's the power cut, there are low grasses and the stumps of shrubs or invasive plants like privet, kept relatively in check by a maintenance crew.
With the lake on your right, looking up the slope of the mountain, you can see that near the power cut is a distinct stand of pine. To the left of the power cut is a space of forest almost entirely dominated by skinny pines, privet, and dead vines, and beyond that a road. This area was probably disturbed during the development of the area. But to the right, the deeper into the forest you go, the more clear the understory is. Pines are almost completely absent, suggesting that this part of the forest is older and more established. On a sunny day and from afar, this is so obvious. The deciduous trees have lost their leaves in the winter, making it easy to see the dramatic the separation between pines near disturbance gaps, and making it easy to see how relatively uncluttered the forest floor is in the older stands. Later succession communities have more established competitor trees, which create fewer opportunities for smaller plants in the understory, especially in the growing season.
Also, the trail in the power cut is a rusty brown color, where clay particles are exposed after years of erosion. In any season, the composition of the organic matter (or the lack of organic matter) on top of the soil can tell you about the kind of community above. Clay and dead grasses dominate the power cut area, but pine needles cover the ground in the early succession areas. Deeper into the forest, the composition changes to a thick layer of recognizable leaf litter.