A Guide to Woodland Plants in the Credit River Watershed (1.86 MB)

Woodland Plants in the
Credit River Watershed
Plants of southern Ontario forests are not only beautiful, but
essential to maintaining the diversity and health of our forests.
They support wildlife from small insect pollinators to larger wildlife
dependent on them as a direct food source. Many non-native
plants, which have been introduced, simply do not provide the
same ecological benefits. Year-round, these forest plants provide an
endless display of colour from spring (ephemeral) flowers and late
season bloomers to perennially graceful ferns.
But, all is not well as threats from development and other human
activities are affecting the health of our forests. Some of these
threats include:
Additional Resources
Learn more about woodland plants, your natural areas and
the challenges they face.
Invasive species
www.creditvalleyca.ca/invasives
About natural areas and wildlife
www.creditvalleyca.ca/naturalheritage
Books recommended for further plant identification
Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide
Peterson’s Field Guide to Wildflowers
Peterson’s Ferns of Northeastern and Central North America
Flowering plants
Ferns
• Blue bead-lily 6
• Bulblet fern 40
• Blue cohosh 8
• Christmas fern 42
• Changes in drainage (e.g. ditches, straightening of waterways)
• Bluestem goldenrod 10 • Oak fern 44
to facilitate new land uses such as the construction of new
• Canada mayflower 12 • Wood ferns 46
roads, buildings and agricultural production.
• Cutleaf and Broadleaf
• D. intermedia
• Picking and trampling of plants.
toothwort 14
• D. carthusiana
• Introduced invasive alien plants that out-compete native plants
• Dutchmen’s breeches or • D. marginalis
and take over woodlots.
Squirrel-corn 16
• Impacts of pollution (both air and water borne).
• False & Starry Solomon’s
• Clearing of the forest understory to make things look ‘tidier’.
seal 18
• Hairy Solomon’s seal 20
This booklet presents some common forest plants. This selection
• Red or White baneberry 22
represents a community of plants, when found abundantly, indicate
• Red or White trillium 24
a healthy forest. Forests that begin to suffer from some of the above
• Rose twisted-stalk 26
noted threats tend to lose many of these plants as a first indicator
• Sharp-lobed hepatica 28
of their decline or poor health. If you find these plants abundantly in
• Spring beauty 30
your area, celebrate this; you’re doing something right. Continue to
• Starflower 32
protect and enjoy them.
• Trout lily 34
• Wild ginger 36
• Wild sarsaparilla 38
2 3