Field trip - Lick Creek Park - Rt. 6 South to Greens Prairie Road, east (left) to Rock Prairie Road, south (right) ca. 1.5 mi. to sign/parking lot (on right).  See Plants of Lick Creek Park for an overview of the path that we will follow through the park and also the species list that is linked to this page.
 
 
 

There are, perhaps, 500 vascular plant species inhabiting the mosaic of plant communities of Lick Creek Park. Once an active series of pastures, this 500+ acre 'natural area' has been relatively undisturbed for over 20 years.  Natural plant communities can be roughly broken down into two basic forest types, upland and bottomland. Open areas that we will encounter represent old pastures that are returning, via ecological succession, to either type.

1. Work on distinguishing angiosperms from other elements of the Lick Creek Park flora and, within angiosperms, between monocots and dicots

2. Be able to recognize families:

    a. Asteraceae (family overview)

    b. Fabaceae or Leguminosae (overview of the Fabales)

    c. Poaceae (overview - also = Gramineae) vs. Juncaceae (overview) and Cyperaceae(overview)

3. Be able to identify (apply technical name and family to a specimen):

    a. American Persimmon - Diospyros virginiana (Ebenaceae)

    b. Rubus - Dewberry, Blackberry - Rosaceae (Rosoideae)

    c. Crataegus - Hawthorne - Rosaceae - Pyroideae

    d. Prunus - Wild Cherry or Plum - Rosaceae - Prunoideae

    e. Vitis - Grape - vs. Parthenocissus - (Virginia Creeper) - Vitaceae

    f. Vaccinium arboreum - Farkleberry - Ericaceae

    g. Quercus (Oak - Fagaceae) vs. Carya (Hickory - Juglandaceae) vs. Ulmus (Elm - Ulmaceae)

    h. Quercus stellata (Post Oak) vs. Q. marilandica (Blackjack Oak) vs. Q. nigra (Water Oak)

    i. Rhus toxicodendron - Poison Ivy - Anacardiaceae

    j. Ilex vomitoria - Yaupon - Aquifoliaceae

    k. Callicarpa americana - American Beauty-Berry - Verbenaceae