More trees!!!
The survey site I chose is the Indian Village camp. Located on the Scioto River bank, on Fishinger road, Dublin OH. This is an educational park as well as a fun family outing park with a boat clubhouse and swings and ohh yeah the ducks!! As a kid I’ve spent most of my childhood feeding the ducks with my family, it is why this park is so special to me. It was going back and reminiscing some old memories.
Let’s dig into some trees
The first tree is the White spruce, Picea glauca. This tree is native to North America and widely grows across the country. It is not only a great ornamental tree but is also a bird haven, serving as both a food source and nesting ground. The delicious pine cones are loved by many species of birds, such as crossbills, cedar waxwings, kinglets, etc.
The next tree is the Sugarberry, Celtis laevigata. It is a deciduous medium-sized tree native to North America. Often found near water – on floodplains, along rivers and streams. There are many species of birds, small mammals, and insects that use sugarberry’s fruits and leaves as a source of food, which makes it a very important part of the ecosystem.
A closer look at the leaves.
Aren’t these beautiful?
This is the False sunflower, Heliopsis helianthoides. This is flowering plant native to central and eastern North America. The false sunflower differ from the true sunflowers because not only can its disks florets produce seeds, but also its ray florets. With true sunflowers, only the disk florets are seed-producing. 
Another flowering beauty on your way…..up next is the New england aster, Symphyotrichum novae – angliae. This plant is native to North America and is widely cultivated for ornamental horticulture and as a garden plant. The flowers are beautiful pink-purple in color which attract many species of birds and insects. 
Let’s look at some shrubs. The next one is the Amur honeysuckle, Lonicera maackii. This is a deciduous shrub, known for the sweet smell of its elegant white flowers. 
And lastly, we have a vine. The Common crownvetch, Securigera varia. This vine often gets employed to prevent soil erosion. It grows low to the ground, and its complex root system can hold soil in place. 
Common crownvetch was originally grown to serve as animal feed. The magical part about this plant is that it provides nutritional value when consumed by ruminants but is poisonous when consumed by non-ruminants such as horses.
Threat!! Poisonous subtsance on your way….
The poison ivy, Toxicodendron radicans. The trifoliolate leaves, the hairy ropes are some of the features to identify the poisonous stuff.
List of species and their CC values
- Skyblue aster 7
- New England aster 2
- Red maple 2
- Horse chestnut 0
- Ohio buckeye 6
- Flowering dogwood 5
- Crownvetch 0
- White snakeroot 3
- American beech 7
- White ash 6
- Black ash 7
- Blue ash 7
- Witch Hazel 5
- Jerusalem artichoke 3
- Black walnut 5
- Water willow 5
- Amur honeysuckle 0
- White evening primrose 0
- White pine 0
- Chestnut oak 7
The Floristic Quality Assessment Index for my sight is 18.12.
Species with high CC values
The Skyblue aster is a perennial that grows upto 3 feet tall. It is easy to grow and it is drought tolerant. Thrives in full sun or partial shade in a variety of well-drained soil types.
The second plant is the Black ash which is categorized as critically endangered, which means facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. 
The third on is the Blue ash which is an endangered species just like the Black ash and it grows in moist valley soils and serves as an important food source for frogs. 
The last one is the American water-willow which has the highest CC values among all my plants. The reason why it has the highest CC value is because the plants with the high CC values occur on rare fragmented natural communities and their significance is much more meaningful. They need largely native remnant habitats with significant ecological integrity if they are to. be conserved in the landscape. Thus, water-willow is found growing along streams, it forms dense colonies that help to stabilize shorelines. 
Species with low CC value
The first one is the White snakeroot which is a weed and is a very toxic plant. Animals who are lactating and consume this plant then the toxin is secreted into the mil which is then consumed by humans and can be fatal. Many early European settlers are suspected to have died of this so called “milk-sickness before they understood the plant’s hazards. 
The second one is the New england aster which is a very famous plant of all asters. Asters are fall flowers, par excellence, and the New England region of the US is famous for being a mecca for autumn travelers because of it. 
The next one is the Evening -primrose which was used as a drug by ancient Indians thousands of years ago. The flower blooms in the evening, unfolding the flower. 
The last one is the Eastern white pine which has the CC value of 0. The reason for it having a low CC value is because these species are ubiquitous on the landscape and need no special conservation effort. By the beginning of the 20th century , there was only 1% of the original forests had this kind of tree because of its highly used wood for construction. 
Invasive species
The Manna ash a deciduous tree that thrives in full sun with moist to dry, well drained soil. Requires both male and female trees in order to produce seeds. 
The White mulberry a unique and easy-to-grow edible landscaping plant. This plant is native to China and was valued for its role in silk production; silkworms will only eat the leaves of white mulberry trees, making them crucial for the product’s creation. Ultimately, the trees were sold around the world and are used today in different countries that produce silk. 
The Dog rose plant is known for its “climbing” as it grows and can even be found climbing up different trees. In latin, the name is originated from its utility in which people believed that the plant can cure dog bites. Hence, it’s called the dog rose. 
The Common buckthorn which is native to Europe is a hazardous plant to humans and most animals; all parts of it are mildly poisonous. Plant grows best in chalky. loam, clay, sand. 
Substrate associated species
The sourwood is a deciduous tree found at the sandstone hill of eastern ohio. The leaves have a sour taste- hence, the name. The tree grows best well drained, slightly acidic soil. 
The American beech is a large deciduous tree found at the glacial till of western ohio. Due to its favorable qualities, the wood of the american beech is often used for making furniture and as firewood. 
The American hornbeam found generally limited to limestone or limey substrates. Wood is used for making tool handles and levers due to its heavy, hard, and strong qualities. 
The White ash which is an endangered species which thrives to grow in clay, loam, sand; slightly acidic, neutral, slightly alkaline. 