Brochure

POINTS OF INTEREST

1. The Pin Cherry is a small tree 3m to 7.5m in height with a slender, erect trunk and a narrow, round-topped crown composed of very thin horizontal branches. It is one of the first trees found in new clearings, and along roadsides.

2. The fruit of wild Apple trees is used by many species, including foxes, robins, and squirrels. Insects feed on the sap, fallen rotting apples and in turn become food for birds.

3. The red-berried Elder is a shrub from 0.60m to 3m high. The stems rise from the ground, usually in clumps, and extend to the top of the shrub. The branches are ascending and the crown is generally rounded in appearance.

4. Forest Succession describes the change from one plant species to another over a long period of time. The first plants to move into an area, called pioneer species, are capable of surviving in full sunlight and under exposed conditions.

5. The Wild Raisin is a straggling bush, 0.60m to 3m high. Its slender, whip-like branches, are ascending, forming a rounded bushy cone. The leaves are thick, leathery and rather dull green.

6. The Red Pine Plantation was established in 1988 on .8 hectares. The evergreen can be identified by its long needle-like leaves borne 2 in a bundle and its light reddish, plated bark. The seed is a favorite food of squirrels, chipmunks, and mice.

7. The Willow’s distinguishing characteristic is the winter buds which have a single cap-like scale. The leaves are fine toothed, mostly long, narrow and pointed at both ends, usually smooth and dark green above, paler and covered with a fine down underneath.

8. The Kalmia is a little shrub with slender, upright stems and narrow, evergreen leaves. Clusters of small pink flowers appear in late spring or early summer.

9. Black Knot is a disease characterized by the presence of thick black, irregular swelling on the twigs which can stunt the growth of a branch. The disease can eventually kill the tree.

10. The White Spruce attains a height of 21m and the trunk is often very branchy and the crown is deep. The White Spruce provides excellent nesting site, cover, and food for birds. The seed is a choice winter food of the white-winged crossbill.

11. Balsam Fir is usually from 12m to 18m high and from 20cm to 40cm in diameter. The branches, extending down to the ground in young trees, come out from the stem in regular whorls. Balsam Fir is a favorite winter food of various birds and small mammals.

12. The White Pine reaches a height of 30.5m. The branches usually grow out at right angles to the trunk in more or less regular whorls of 5. There are over two dozen birds and several mammals that eat the seeds and nest in the cover of the large branches and cavities.

13. The Wild Spirea is rather shrubby with woody stems, is sometimes many branched, sometimes not branched at all. Its flower is white to pink and flourishes in fields and roadsides.

14. The White Birch is a medium sized tree 18m to 21m in height. In the woods, the trunk is long and clear, often leaning and crooked. In the open it is short and the crown is large, composed of many stout limbs and ascending branches. The White Birch provides food, cover, and nesting cavities for many birds.

15. The Beech tree’s trunk is usually short, often crooked and breaks up not far from the ground into a dense, massive crown of wide- spreading tough and flexible branches.

16. The Trembling Aspen is not a large tree, averaging about 12m in height. The trunk is slender, with a gradual taper. It reproduces quickly by means of root suckers.

17. The Largetooth Aspen is a medium-sized tree, 15m to 18m in height with a tall, straight trunk. The buds and catkins are a favorite food of birds, and older trees provide nesting cavities for woodpeckers.

18. The Bayberry is a small shrub, seldom rising above two and a half feet; from the fruit, a fine green wax is extracted by boiling which makes excellent candles. The gray, waxy berries provide food for birds.

19. Tree Galls are abnormal growths on leaves, bark, flowers, buds, acorns, or roots due to the feeding of living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, insects and mites.

Thanks to landowners Jim Beck and the Hicken family for the use of their land and their generous support.

Thanks to Kevin Brothers, Peter Sheppard, David Carmichael, and Danny Birt of Environment, Energy, and Forestry for their valuable assistance.

For their financial contribution and support, thanks to:

- SKC Home and School Association

- Canadian Wildlife Federation

- IWK Charitable Foundation

- Kids Count: The Learning Fund