Johnny's Ohio Plants Web Site

Four High CC Plants

1.) Sweet Goldenrod (Solidago odora) CC= 8

• Leaves are entire and lance shaped, distinct odor, flowers in curved one-sided clusters.
• Sweet Goldenrod was used in tea in the US after the Boston Tea Party. (https://shannontrimboli.com/sweet-goldenrod/)

2.) Beech (Fagus grandifolia) CC= 7

• Smooth gray bark, many scaled thin buds, alternate simple leaves, and triangular nuts.
• Excellent wood used to produce barrels, furniture, and railroad ties. (https://www.gardenguides.com/129396-hickory-tree-leaf-identification.html)

3.) Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) CC= 6

• Alternate palmate leaves, shiny and five pointed with finely toothed lobes. Distinct fruit.
• Sweetgum produces resin that has been used for folk medicine and in chewing gum. (https://homeguides.sfgate.com/sweet-gum-tree-27329.html)

4.) Tulip-Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera) CC= 6

• Notched tip, 4 pointed leaves, pith chambered, and twigs hairless. Opposite and Simple.
• Tulip-Tree is the state tree of Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. (https://www.hunker.com/12212749/tulip-tree-facts)

 

Four Low CC Plants

1.) Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) CC= 0

• Egg-shaped compound leaves, paired thorns, and end buds false.
• Black Locust is a nitrogen fixer so it provides an essential ecologic duty. (https://extension.umn.edu/identify-invasive-species/black-locust)

2.) White Pine (Pinus strobus) CC= 0

• Needles 2″-4″ occurring in bundles of 5, slender cones, and thornless.
• The White Pine is known as the “Tree of Peace” by the Iroquois people. (https://www.coniferousforest.com/eastern-white-pine.htm#:~:text=Quick%20Information%20%20%20Other%20Names%20%20,Up%20to%203%20%2012%20more%20rows%20)

3.) Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) CC= 0

• Flower heads 1-2″, outer bracts turned downward, and abundant weed.
• Common Dandelions are known to open in the mornings and close at night. (http://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-dandelions/#:~:text=Dandelion%20is%20a%20common%20meadow%20herb%20of%20the,closes%20in%20the%20evening%20to%20go%20to%20sleep.)

4.) White Clover (Trifolium repens) CC= 0

• White flowers in dense heads, leaflets 3, and fine toothed.
• White Clover is a choice food for deer and elk. (https://plants.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_trre3.pdf)

 

Invasive Species

1.) Chicory (Cichorium intybus) CC= 0

• Blue rays that are toothed at the tips and large flower heads.
• Chicory is native to North Africa, Europe, and Asia. (https://www.softschools.com/facts/plants/chicory_facts/1165/)

2.) Tartarian Honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica) CC= 0

• Leaves smooth beneath, deeply lobed flowers, and leaves egg-shaped.
• Tartarian Hineysuckle was introduced from China in 1845. (https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/lonicera/tatarica/#:~:text=Characteristics.%201%20there%20are%20no%20superposed%20buds%20on,2.2%20the%20winter%20buds%20are%20ovoid%20%28egg-shaped%29%20)

3.) Amur Honeysuckle (Lonicera mackii) CC= 0

• Long-stalked pairs of flowers growing on axils, flowers tubular, and leaves oblong.
• Amur Honeysuckle was planted as an ornamental plants in New York in the 1800s, but soon became naturalized to the Midwest. (https://www.mda.state.mn.us/plants/pestmanagement/weedcontrol/noxiouslist/amurhoneysuckle)

 

Geobotany

1.) Eastern Red-Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) CC= 3

• Red-Cedar is common on limy substrates.
• Scale-like and longer leaves, sharply 3 sided, and needle-like.
• Red-cedars provide fruits that are eaten by cedar waxwings. (https://www.coniferousforest.com/eastern-red-cedar.htm)

2.) Beech (Fagus grandifolia) CC= 7

• Beech is common in high lime, clay-rich substrates.
• Smooth gray bark, many scaled thin buds, alternate simple leaves, and triangular nuts.
• Excellent wood used to produce barrels, furniture, and railroad ties. (https://www.gardenguides.com/129396-hickory-tree-leaf-identification.html)

3.) Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum) CC= 5

• Sugar Maple is common on high lime, clay-rich substrates.
• Leaves are deeply 5-lobed, opposite, and simple.
• Sugar Maples are susceptible to galls and cankers from fungus infections. (https://gardenerdy.com/sugar-maple-tree-facts/ )

4.) White Oak (Quercus alba) CC= 6

• White Oak is common on high lime, clay-rich substrates.
• Evenly lobed leaves, twigs hairless, and acorn cup bowl-shaped.
• White Oaks can reach 50-100 feet tall and 50-80 feet wide when mature. (https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/oak/white-oak-tree-facts.htm)