Nature at its best in Newberry County, South Carolina
BOTANICAL DIVERSITY OF
LYNCH'S WOODS PARK
PLANT DIVERSITY
Lynch’s Woods contains a high diversity of plant species. The largest and
most easily seen are the vascular plants, plants with vascular tissue (just like
we have arteries & veins). A total of 530
species of vascular plants were found during a 3-year survey within the park
(2001-2004) by Dr. Charles Horn. The diversity is considered to be well above the average for this
size of land surveyed. This number of species represents about 60% of the known
flora of the entire county. Of greater importance is the presence of three
unusual plants:
-
May-white azalea (Rhododendron eastmanii)
– Picture to right. This species is an endemic to South Carolina (found no where else on the
planet). I recently published a research article documenting all known
populations and all but one are found within the watersheds of the Broad and Congaree Rivers. The Lynch’s woods site may well represent the largest of
the species. Shrubs grow to eight feet tall and occur on slopes above streams.
-
Eastern Prairie Anemone (Anemone berlandieri)
– This species is known from the Great Plains, but is quite rare in eastern
North America. Only two locations are known in South Carolina. Within the
park, plants are found in an upland hickory-pine mixed forest; one of the
areas originally slated by the Forestry Commission for cutting in their May
2005 report.
-
Piedmont Aster (Eurybia mirabilis)
– This species is known only from North & South Carolina and is federally
listed as a "species of concern". A number of plants are found along
streams throughout the park.
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Besides vascular plants, Lynch's Woods also has a diversity of lichens and
nonvascular plants. Lichens are organisms which are actually two species
living together in symbiosis, an alga and a fungus. Lichens most commonly
commonly grow on rocks and tree trunks. Nonvascular plants include algae,
mosses, and liverworts.
PLANT SPECIES LISTS
Lichens | Nonvascular plants |
Vascular plants
PLANT COMMUNITIES
A plant community is defined by the presence of a specific growth form (herb,
shrub, or tree), and the species present. Most ecologists only consider
the potential community types, thinking of what would develop without human
intervention over hundreds of years. Here, we will look at the communities
as seen and consider the potential for development over the next millennium.
Much of Lynch’s Woods
(about 200 acres) is developing into a forest community known as a mixed-mesophytic
forest. This is a community type with a variety of hardwood species, including
oaks, tulip poplar, beech and other species. Much of this community type is
found on north-facing slopes, but some is
within relatively flat uplands. Within the mixed-mesophytic forest, the
May-white azalea is common on the slopes while the piedmont aster is common
along streams.
A variety of herbs are found along the powerline
right-of-ways, which account for about 10 acres of the park. These open
spaces are mowed about every three year, and unfortunately, have been sprayed
with herbicide twice over the last 15 years. In the short term, much of
the vegetation is killed (animals too?); but it does provide an opening for
colonizing annual weeds and, eventually, perennial herbs and shrubs.
The extreme uplands, especially to the south are of
successional pine or mixed hickory-pine forest. In almost all cases, the
mature pines make up less than 50% of the forests. Since the pine
woodlands within the park are mature, some
trees die each year. They are replaced by the slower growing elm, hickory, and oaks;
specific tree composition varies with site. Many of the upland sites, without
intervention from humans will develop into a oak-hickory forest, a community
type which is uncommon in South Carolina (due to the abundance of logging of
upland sites in the state).
This page last updated
18 May 2008
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related websites: Charles Horn's home page