George,
Great report and find! I'm anxious to hear what more you find. Looks like M. X soulangiana to me. Will _____ From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of George Fieo Sent: Monday, August 24, 2009 6:02 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [ENTS] Dark Hollow Park, Bucks Co., Pa. ENTS, On 8/8/09 I visited Dark Hollow Park located in Bucks Co., Pa. The park is a result of a dam proposal along the Neshaminy Creek that was cancelled in the late 1980's when found to be environmentally and economically unfeasible. The park is just over four miles in length by way the crow flies and runs through Doylestown, Warwick, and Buckingham Townships. The park is divided north to south by the Neshaminy Creek and east to west by State Rte. 263 (York Rd.). The park is reported to have old hemlocks and very old oaks which is what had drawn me to the park. I had only enough time to explore the southwest portion of the park which is mostly lowland hardwoods dominated by bitternut hickory. There are no maintained trails in this section of the park and only a well worn footpath along the creek which is about 300 yards in length and overgrown with multi-flora rose. I used deer trails for most of my exploration. I found a small parking area along Valley Rd. and headed west along the footpath. The first tree that caught my eye was a magnolia. I don't know what kind of magnolia it is but it seems large for it's species. Two of it's leaders are growing along the ground for more than 15' before shooting upward. Unidentified magnolia. The magnolia is growing in a narrow portion of the park between the creek and the road. There is an old farmhouse directly across the street and most likely planted by the original owner. Leaves of unidentified magnolia. >From the magnolia I could see two large white oak. I headed up the trail and made my way through the briars to get to the oaks. They looked old and weathered. The smaller of the two had lost a portion of it's top. They measured 12.1' x 71.2' and 15' x 92.9'. These oaks and magnolia are within 50 yards of the parking lot. 15' white oak with 12.1' white oak in background. Leaving the oaks I could see an old tree line planted with fat, gnarly osage-orange that's being over grown by the younger forest. Here I bumped some deer that were bedded in the multi-flora rose under the canopy of the 100' bitternut hickories. Back on the footpath I passed a couple of sycamore and a handful of white oaks with circumferences over 12'. All of them growing along the creek bank. A young black gum growing under one of the oaks caught my eye. A beaver had gnawed more than halfway through it. The wound doesn't look fresh and amazingly it's top is green. Black gum vs. beaver. Continuing upstream I came across a large sycamore. It seems to be a double stem. It's the tallest of the sycamores and measures 18.7' x 105.9'. Above the sycamore on a gentle slope were some large trees, possibly part of an old property line. The largest being a tulip poplar with a 12.6' cbh. The canopy was to thick to get a height measurement. I passed through several swampy areas dominated by red maple and a few large swamp white oaks. I caught the flight of a great horned owl out of the corner of my eye and when my eyes settled back on the forest floor I was staring at a beautiful american hornbeam. It's the largest I have personally seen at 3.1' x 45.1' with a max spread of 55'. . 3.1' x 45.1' American hornbeam. Trekking on I came across a mature grove of upland hardwoods above a steep ridge overlooking the Neshaminy Creek. A large hemlock surrounded by a few of it's dead offspring sat atop the ridge and was the only mature hemlock I saw with a cbh of 8.9'. I believe most of the large hemlocks are in the eastern portion of the park. The largest tree in this grove is a dead northern red oak at 11.5' x 110.2'. Passing through the mature hardwoods the forest appeared younger. I was getting tired and short on time. I could see an opening in the forest floor about 150 yards ahead of me and decided to have a quick look around before I headed back to my truck. I'm glad I did. A monster pin oak was shading out the understory. It's 14.8' x 102.3' x 98'. It's now the second largest pin oak for Pa. Who knows what else Dark Hollow Park has hiding in it's shadows? 14.8' x 102.3' pin oak. 14.8' x 102.3' pin oak Dark Hollow Park Site Index 8/8/09 Species CBH Height Comment A Hornbeam 1.8 40.1 A hornbeam 1.4 42.3 A Hornbeam 3.1 45.1 max spread 55' Bitternut Hickory 8.1 112.7 Bitternut Hickory 6.5 116.1 Black Gum 7.1 70.9 Black Gum 9.5 90.2 Black Walnut 7.3 103.2 Black Walnut 6.0 110.1 Box Elder 3.9 78.0 E Hemlock 8.9 N/A E Hophornbeam 2.0 40.4 E Hophornbeam 2.3 46.1 Flowering Dogwood 1.5 31.7 Hawthorn Spp. 1.9 35.7 N Red Oak 11.5 110.2 dead N Red Oak 11.2 119.9 Pin Oak 9.0 98.8 Pin Oak 14.8 102.3 12x100, 2nd largest Pa. Pin Oak 7.8 102.9 Red Maple 7.5 84.3 Red Maple 7.8 95.6 River Birch 5.2 51.9 Sassafras 4.7 85.8 Shagbark Hickory 5.0 99.6 Shagbark Hickory 8.1 101.5 Slippery Elm 5.8 85.1 Sugar Maple 5.9 99.2 Sugar Maple 7.7 111.2 Swamp White Oak 9.7 87.3 Swamp White Oak 8.8 96.1 Swamp White Oak 11.1 99.7 Swamp White Oak 9.3 105.4 Sycamore(2x) 18.7 105.9 Tulip Poplar 12.6 98.5 Tulip Poplar 8.8 111.5 White Ash 9.9 95.0 White Ash 5.6 106.1 White Ash 9.1 111.7 White Oak 12.1 71.2 top out White Oak 12.8 N/A White Oak 13.5 77.5 White Oak 15.0 92.9 Rucker Height Index Species CBH Height N Red Oak 11.2 119.9 Bitternut Hickory 6.5 116.1 White Ash 9.1 111.7 Tulip Poplar 8.8 111.5 Sugar Maple 7.7 111.2 Black Walnut 6.0 110.1 Sycamore(2x) 18.7 105.9 Swamp White Oak 9.3 105.4 Pin Oak 7.8 102.9 Shagbark Hickory 8.1 101.5 RHI 109.62 Rucker Girth Index Species CBH Height White Oak 15.0 92.9 Pin Oak 14.8 102.3 Tulip Poplar 12.6 98.5 N Red Oak 11.5 110.2 Swamp White Oak 11.1 99.7 White Ash 9.9 95.0 Black Gum 9.5 90.2 E Hemlock 8.9 N/A Bitternut Hickory 8.1 112.7 Shagbark Hickory 8.1 101.5 RGI 10.95 There was a 12'+ sycamore along the creek that I couldn't measure also. George --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
