The Northern Hardwood Forest National Parks

The northern hardwood mix of beech birch and maple dominates vermont s forests accounting for 71 of the forest cover.

The northern hardwood forest national parks.

The forest contains a small slice of true boreal forest and a mixed conifer hardwood forest known as the north woods a transition province between the northern boreal forest and deciduous forests to the south conifers include several varieties of pine fir and spruce trees principal deciduous species are mountain ash maple aspen oak and paper birch are also common. Located in central south carolina the park protects part of the middle atlantic coastal forests ecoregion. The forests of vermont are as diverse as the landowners that care for them. Northern hardwood forests have been well sampled in virginia especially in the mount rogers whitetop area of the southern blue ridge and on allegheny mountain in highland county.

Thousands of acres of northern hardwood conifer forests grow on well drained fertile slopes of hillsides in new hampshire typically between 1 500 and 2 500 feet in elevation here sugar maple american beech and yellow birch are the dominant tree species mixed with red maple white ash and patches of hemlock at lower elevations and red spruce and balsam fir at higher elevations. This forest type is frequently referred to as a swamp. The northern hardwood forest is indigenous to several well known parks and national forests including the boundary waters region of minnesota new york s adirondack park the white mountain national forest in new hampshire the green mountain national forest in vermont baxter state park and acadia national park in maine and fundy national. The 26 276 acre congaree national park preserves the largest tract of old growth bottomland hardwood forest left in the united states.

This forest type produces the most brilliant fall color. For both forests a state park sticker is required. The park s northern hardwood forests resemble the forests that grow throughout much of new england new york pennsylvania and southern ontario. 1 although some of the classified units are better supported by plot data than others.

The northern forest has 30 000 acres stretching 30 miles across sheboygan fond du lac and washington counties. Eastern hemlock trees dominate stream sides and moist shady slopes up to 4 000 feet in elevation to form almost pure stands of the hemlock forest. To date 79 plots of this group have been sampled in 18 counties fig.