Nature Net’s Pre- and Post-field Trip materials
Subject: Woodlands
Level: Middle School
Introduction
Woodlands are forest communities dominated by coniferous and/or deciduous trees with a variety of shrubs. Healthy woodlands contain a variety of different tree species, at varying stages of growth. As old-growth trees die, their nutrients are recycled and used by second-growth tree species, perpetuating the cycle. Animals inhabiting forest and forest-edge habitats rely on various trees for shelter and food.
Vocabulary
Deciduous Tree: Deciduous trees are broad-leaf trees that lose their foliage at the end of the growing season. Common deciduous trees include oaks, maples, elms, and walnut.
Coniferous Tree: Conifers are trees that have needle-shaped leaves which they retain year-round and seeds within cones. Common conifers include pines, cedars, and firs.
Canopy: The roof of the forest formed by green leaves and branches, usually of larger old-growth tree species.
Under story: Undergrowth of small trees and shrubs, below a forest canopy. Often dominated by second-growth trees and other fast-growing plant species.
Succession: An orderly process of vegetative replacement of one plant community by another.
Old growth: Mature stands of trees present in an area that have been undisturbed for many decades; usually contains trees of large size dominating the canopy.
Second-growth: Growth following the removal of an original forest, by cutting, fire, or other natural causes. Second-growth forests generally consist of fast-growing trees of limited mature size.
Reforestation: The natural or artificial restocking of an area with forest trees. Often non-native or a single species of tree makes up artificial reforestation.
Concepts
-Old-growth woodlands are dominated by mature tree species. These trees dominate the canopy and limit the growth of under story plant species. When they die by disease, fire, or cutting, a new area for second-growth species to thrive opens. Second-growth trees often grow quickly and tend to spread out in the under story. They do not develop into tall, canopy dominating trees.
-Logging has altered the condition of many native forests across the country. Reforested woodlands are often made up of tree species valued by lumber or paper industries. There are advantages and disadvantages to this type of reforestation.
-Woodland forests are comprised of several layers: canopy, under story, shrub layer, herb layer, and duff layer. Larger, older trees dominate the canopy. Smaller trees of the under story push upwards toward available light, attempting to take a place in the canopy. The thickness of the canopy affects the number of plants in the shrub layer: a more open canopy allows more undergrowth. The herb layer is composed mainly of grasses, wildflowers, and ferns, surviving on whatever diffused light is available. The duff layer, at the base of the forest, serves to recycle dead plant and animal material. In this layer, nutrients are brought back into the environment, and the growth of additional plant life is possible. All of these layers are present to some degree in a healthy, balanced forest.
Suggested Post-Visit Activities
After your visit to some of the Nature Net sites, you can explore woodland communities further by planting native trees in your schoolyard. This will serve to beautify the area, as well as provide future habitats for birds and other animals.
Suggested Readings
For Teachers:
Project Learning Tree: Environmental Education Activity Guide. American Forest Foundation, Washington, D. C. 1993.
Field Guide to North American Trees: Eastern Region. Little, Elbert L. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. 1980.
For Students:
The Gift of the Tree. Tresselt, Alvin. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books. 1992.