The Nature Trail at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School is an area on our campus where students can study organisms, both native and introduced, in a hands-on setting. The Nature Trail can be divided into four distinct plant communities:
The Hemlock Grove (oak-conifer forest)
An Oak-Conifer Forest gros on well drained nutrient poor, relatively thin soils over acidic bedrock such as granite or gneiss. The hemlock, oak, and pine leaves decompose slowly creating deep feal littet and contributing acidity to the soil chemistry. Humans have also played a role in this forest type creating groves of white pine where previously they would have been lone trees among the hardwoods. Few species are confined to this community and the each community is varied in composition over its range. Most plants are found in other communities as well.
Canopy Trees
eastern hemlock Tsuga canadensis white pine Pinus strobus red oak Quercus rubra American beech Fagus grandifolia black birch Betula lenta paper (white) birch Betula papyrifera gray birch Betula populifolia white ash Fraxinus americana American chestnut Castanea dentata Understory Trees, Srubs and Vines
Common Juniper Juniperus communis maple-leaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium common elder Sambucus canadensis Jack-in-the-pulpit Arisaema atrorubens Ferns, Clubmosses, Horsetails, and Wildflowers
Cinnamon Fern Osmunda cinnamonera Sensetive Fern Onoclea sensibilis Red Maple Swamp
A Red Maple Swamp is a plant community identified by the abundance of red maples and the presence of other water loving species. These communities are flooded or at least thoroughly sturated for part of the year (usually winter and spring) and have undrained, hydric soils. Wooded swamps may contain five distinct layers of vegetation: the mature trees that form the canopy; the younger saplings; the lower shrub layer; an herbaceous stratum of ferns, wildeflowers, grasses, and sedges; and a ground cover of mosses and clubmosses. The structural complexity is matched by the high biological diversity, with at least 50 species of trees, 90 species of shrubs and vines, and over 300 species of nonwoody plants.
Trees and Shrubs
red maple Acer rubrum white pine Pinus strobus black cherry Prunus serotinal yellow birch Betula alleghaniensis swamp white oak Quercus bicolor American elm Ulmus americana witch hazel Hamamelis virginiana black ash Fraxinus nigra green ash Fraxinus pennsylvanica Shrubs and Vines
common elderberry Sambucus canadensis common winterberry Ilex verticillata Ironwood Caprinus caroliniana speckled alder Alnus incana (or rugosa) low-bush blueberry Vaccinium angustifolium high-bush blueberry Vavvvinium corymbossum Ferns, Clubmosses, and Horsetails
cinnamon fern Osmunda cinnamonera royal fern Osmunda regalis sensitive fern Onoclea sensibilis Wildflowers
jewelweed Impatiens capensis skunk cabbage Symplocarpus foetidus Pond Community
Ponds are still bodies of fresh water created both naturally and by people. By definition ponds are shallow enough that light can reach the entire bottom, allowing plants to grow from shore to shore; they go not stratify; and they may freeze to the bottom in winter. In ponds the food web is based on the growth of rooted plants and algea. Grasses, wildflowers and shrubs rim the shore; trees form the crowning border.
Trees and Shrubs
red oak Quercus rubra white oak Quercus alba high-bush blueberry Vaccinium corymbossum gray birch Betula populifolia speckled alder Alnus incana black willow Salix nigra Grasses and Wildflowers
Cattail Typha latifolia
Successional Community
Disturbed sites have species that thrive in open, sunny habitats. These species are generally fast growing, disperse easily, and reproduce quickly. The disturbance may be natural duch as a fire or windstorms but is more often man-made. Areas where these species are common include rodesides, old fields, and vacant lots to name a few. Many species growing in these areas are aliens. Aliens are plants that have been introduced from elsewhere and are not native to the area. These plants are often introduced accidentally or may escape from cultivation. The open nature of the disturbed habitats makes it easy for alien species to colinize. In additionm the species often thrive since their natural enemies are not present.
Trees and Shrubs
European Buckthorn Rhamnus frangula Multiflora Rose Rosa multiflora Staghorn Sumac Rhus typhina Wildflowers
Queen Anne's Lace Daucus carota Goldenrod Solidago canadensis Black-eyed susan Rudbeckia hirta Red Clover Trifolium pratens Purple loose-strife Lythrum salicaria Swamp Milkweed Asclepias syriaca Daisy Fleabane Erigeron annuus