The DNR Wildlife Viewing Grants Program emphasizes species and habitats that are conservation priorities in Georgia’s State Wildlife Action Plan. The plan is a comprehensive strategy to conserve native species and the habitats they need before these animals, plants and places become more rare and costly to conserve or restore.
The slope forest community type occurs mainly in mesic habitat and is dominated by hardwood trees such as: American beech, southern magnolia, American holly, sweetgum, hophornbeam, black cherry, black gum, Florida maple, Shumard oak, white oak, and Darlington oak. Two evergreen conifers: loblolly and spruce pine also occur.
Midstory woody plants include flowering dogwood, fringetree, redbud, wax myrtle, red mulberry, horse sugar, and two heath plants: sparkleberry and Elliott’s blueberry.
Characteristic understory plants include longleaf woodoats, partridgeberry, Virginia creeper, Christmas fern, and spring ephemerals.
Two interesting parasitic plants lacking chlorophyll occur: beechdrops, which is parasitic on the roots of American beech trees, and American cancer-root, which is parasitic on the roots of woody plants, especially oaks.
On wetter sections and seeps, other characteristic plants include swamp chestnut oak, yellow poplar, American hornbeam, two-wing silverbell, jack-in-the-pulpit, green dragon, primrose-leaf violet, caric sedges, a number of fern species, and one rare plant – the Florida bellwort.
Slope forests are often situated between higher, drier sites and lower hydric sites, including floodplain forest. Slope forests are also known as “beech-magnolia forests,” which are two of the dominant trees in the mature slope forest. The rich plant diversity is related to the north and east exposure which creates cooler temperatures. Fire tends to be rare in these slope forests.
The slope forest community type occurs mainly in mesic habitat and is dominated by hardwood trees such as: American beech, southern magnolia, American holly, sweetgum, hophornbeam, black cherry, black gum, Florida maple, Shumard oak, white oak, and Darlington oak. Two evergreen conifers: loblolly and spruce pine also occur.
Midstory woody plants include flowering dogwood, fringetree, redbud, wax myrtle, red mulberry, horse sugar, and two heath plants: sparkleberry and Elliott’s blueberry.
Characteristic understory plants include longleaf woodoats, partridgeberry, Virginia creeper, Christmas fern, and spring ephemerals.
Two interesting parasitic plants lacking chlorophyll occur: beechdrops, which is parasitic on the roots of American beech trees, and American cancer-root, which is parasitic on the roots of woody plants, especially oaks.
On wetter sections and seeps, other characteristic plants include swamp chestnut oak, yellow poplar, American hornbeam, two-wing silverbell, jack-in-the-pulpit, green dragon, primrose-leaf violet, caric sedges, a number of fern species, and one rare plant – the Florida bellwort.
Slope forests are often situated between higher, drier sites and lower hydric sites, including floodplain forest. Slope forests are also known as “beech-magnolia forests,” which are two of the dominant trees in the mature slope forest. The rich plant diversity is related to the north and east exposure which creates cooler temperatures. Fire tends to be rare in these slope forests.