Native Plants
Native plants are an important part of any ecosystem.
Every place has plants, animals, and weather patterns unique to it. And all of these things are crucial to making and maintaining a healthy balanced ecosystem. Our native plants are the ones that are adapted specifically to grow here. They are the plants that grow naturally and thrived without human intervention. These trees, shrubs, wildflowers, and grasses all play an important role in a healthy and biodiverse ecosystem.
Below you will find a few native plants that we wanted to highlight to help you on your journey to being familiar with the plants of our landscape.
You can click on a plant from this list to take you straight to it!
Poison Ivy
How to recognize
Can be found in three different forms: shrub, climbing vine, or ground vine. This is the climbing vine that when dormmate, is identifiable by its very hairy vine climbing the tree without harming the tree itself.
Why are they Important
Berries serve as food for herbivores and birds
They are a structural part of the forest ecosystem, allowing wildlife to find safe places to nest and take shelter from predators.
Spicebush
How to Recognize:
Spicebush has leaves of varying sizes, all pointed oval or teardrop shaped. They have vibrant red berries in the fall. The leaves, when rubbed or crushed, give of a fragrant fruit-y allspice-like scent. And the berries, when crushed, smell peppery. Do not eat the berries! They are good for wildlife but not for people.
The bark of the spicebush is generally a darker gray/brown with lots of noticeable tiny light-colored raised dots.
In the spring the develop small yellow flowers along their branches.
Why are they important:
They are the host plant to our native Spicebush swallowtail butterfly. Meaning the larva of the spicebush are raised almost exclusively on it.
The berries very important food source for birds and other herbivores.
Provide shelter in the forest for small to medium size mammals like deer and foxes.
Their spring buds are a valuable resource for early pollinators.
Maple-leaf Viburnum
How to Recognize:
This petite shrub has leaves remarkably like that of a maple tree. The leaves are dark green in the growing season and a beautiful soft red/orange in fall. In the springtime they bloom with tiny white flowers in unbelled clusters. And in fall they have small berries.
Why they are Important:
The berries of the maple-leaf viburnum are also a valuable food resource for wildlife.
The flowers are good for native pollinators in spring.
And shrub provides a uniquely small and dense shade spot in the forest (as compared to the much taller trees).
Tulip Tree
How to Recognize:
Tall straight trunk with deeply ridged long lines of bark that run vertically. Typically light brown or grayish in color. The leaves are distinct 4 lobed, cartoon cat-face shaped. In spring the seedpods have a very tulip-flower like appearance.
Why are they important:
Important habitat for climbing and high flying wildlife like squirrels and raptors.
Provides shade to the forest, creating the ideal habitat for small plants and wildlife alike.
Leaves and eventual fallen trunk provide rich nutrients to the soil of the forest floor.
Sycamore Tree
How to Recognize:
Bright white bark where old bark has come off. Mottled, almost camouflage looking bark pattern. Most often found in the park right down by the creek. Leaves are pointed and often appear crown shaped. Both tree trunk and leaves often grow very large.
Why are they Important:
Provides habitat for birds that live along the creek, like kingfishers.
Strong structural element in wetland habitats, fast growing and long living. They don't mind 'getting their feet wet'.
The wood decays quickly developing large hollows perfect for nesting.
Beech Tree
How to Recognize:
There are lots of Beech trees all over. Beech trees are very light gray, almost white, with very smooth looking bark. But if you get up close to one, you will see the tiny bumps and ridges they have all over.
Beech leaves are a very distinct pointed oval with strong ridges.
Why they are Important:
Beechnuts are an important food source for wildlife including squirrels & chipmunks
Cavity dwelling birds like tufted titmice live in beech trees.
Wide reaching branches provide lots of shade in the summer sun.