Getting Low at Sudden

Yesterday Alyssa and I went for a hike at Sudden Tract, a large forest and wetland owned and managed by the Region of Waterloo southwest of Cambridge.  The topography and divesity makes it a personal favourite for any season.  Walking the trails I got to thinking that there are a few species similar in form and found at many of the dry-fresh oak-hickory forests within North Dumfries Township.

With it's bright red berries Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens) sticks out among the oak leaf litter.  Both the berries and leaves give off the pleasant wintergreen aroma and flavour when crushed/chewed.  You can make a tea from the dried fruits/berries. 

A similar low-growing, prostrate, red-berried shrub with evergreen leaves, Creeping Partridge-berry (Mitchella repens).  Perhaps the most distinct feature  of Partridge-berry is the light colouration along the leaf mid-rib.

 Another species which grows prostrate and low to the ground, Shinleaf (Pyrola elliptica) is also a member of the Wintergreen family.  It can be found on the fringe of wetland or waterbody features.  I think I saw all four of these 'similar' species growing within 10m of one another beneath Witch-hazel (Hamamelis virginiana), White Oak (Quercus alba) and among more or less continuous sedge carpet.  It's a pretty awesome spot.  There are three other Pyrola species known to Waterloo Region (P. americana, P. asarifolia and P. chlorantha - all regionally rare).

Common Pipsissewa (Chimaphila umbellata) otherwise known as Prince's-Pine is also a member of the Wintergreen family.  It's often associated with pine and oak forests.  Where the flowers of Shinleaf are spread along a stalk, those of Pipsissewa essentially droop from the top of the stalk.

Alongside one of the trails this green Sassafras (Sassafras albidum) sapling caught my eye.  As the second photo shows, the green really sticks out (especially against my thread-bare field pants).  This fragrant tree is sometimes called the mitten tree as the leaves often take the form of a mitten with a smaller 'thumb' lobe sticking out to one (or two) sides of the larger lobe.  Leaves with two 'thumbs' look alot like those of Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida).  The foliage turns a bright red in fall.

A shot of the deeply fissured bark.  

Another cool find for the day, Squawroot (Conopholis americana). This species is parasitic on oak roots.  In season, the cream coloured 'cones' are a little more attractive than the crunchy brown remnants that you find at this time of year.