A Guide to Plants and Trees in Shark River Park, NJ

1. Do not go where the path may lead, go
instead where there is no path and leave
a trail.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
SHARK RIVER PARK
FLORA GUIDE
Kim Boggio

3. Temperate Deciduous Forest
The temperate deciduous forest biome occupies most of the eastern part of the United States and a small
strip of southern Ontario. Precipitation varies from 28 inches per year in the northwestern section of the
biome to 60 inches per year in the southeastern part; in most areas the precipitation is distributed evenly
throughout the year. Frost occurs throughout the biome, and summer and winter are distinct seasons.
The dominant plant species of the biome are broad-leaved deciduous trees. Because the biome covers
such a large geographical area, large differences have led to the recognition of eight major forest regions
within the biome, each dominated by a different species or association of species. These are: mixed
mesophytic, Appalachian oak, hemlock-white pine-northern hardwoods, oak-hickory, maple-basswood,
beech-maple, oak-pine, and southern pine.
The mixed mesophytic (moderately moist) forest region is in the centrally located and topographically
diverse Appalachian and Cumberland Plateaus. Geologically, it is the oldest region in the biome and is the
most complex and highly developed biotically. Nearly all the dominant species in the entire biome are
found here, and many reach their maximum development here. The mixed mesophytic region is thought to
be the center of dispersal from which the other forest regions in the biome were formed. In all, there are
about 30 tree species which assume dominance in the region; however, in most areas dominance is
shared by two or three of these species, depending on differences in microclimate and other factors.
Yellow buckeye (Aesculus octandra) and white basswood (Tilia heterophylla) are the most constant
dominants and are considered the indicator species for the region. Other common dominants include
yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), American beech (Fagus grandifolia), cucumber magnolia (Magnolia
acuminata), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), white oak (Quercus alba), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga
canadensis).

4. Trees of the Eastern Deciduous Forest

5. Family – Genus - Species

6. New Jersey (Coastal Wetland Protection Act -N.J. STAT.
ANN. Section 13:18-1 to 13:9A-10):
"Coastal wetlands" are "any bank, marsh, swamp, meadow,
flat or other low land subject to tidal action in the Delaware
Bay and Delaware River, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay,
Shrewsbury River including Navesink River, Shark River,
and the coastal inland waterways extending southerly from
Manasquan Inlet to Cape May Harbor, or at any inlet,
estuary, or those areas now or formerly connected to tidal
areas whose surface is at or below an elevation of 1 foot
above local extreme high water, and upon which may grow
or is capable of growing some, but not necessarily all, of
the following:" (19 plants are listed.) Coastal wetlands
exclude "any land or real property subject to the jurisdiction
of the Hackensack Meadowlands Development
Commission...."

7. Wetland Types

8. • Pinnately compound leaf
• Weed tree
• Invasive species

9. • Conifer

10. • Pointy buds
• Beechnut fruit
• Smooth grey bark
• Alternate branching

11. • White Bark
• Catkin fruit
• Deciduous
• Alternate branching

12. Birch Trunk
• Horizontal lenticels

14. • Lowland species

15. • Pinnately compound
• Produces walnuts
• Beautiful wood
• Roots emit toxins

16. • Opposite branching

17. • Genus Acer has
opposite branching
• Samaras - fruit

19. • Acorns – fruit
• Alternate branching

20. • “Mitten” leaves

22. • Spiked ball fruit

23. White Pine
Pinus Strobus
• 5 needles to a fascicle

26. Bryophyte – Moss
Non Vascular plant

27. Mountain Laurel – related to Rhododendron

28. Rhododendron - Rhododendron Macrophyllum

29. Fern Lace - Microlepia strigosa

30. Poke weed - Phytolacca americana
• Indians used
berries as dye

31. Kudzu – Invasive Species

32. Wild Raspberry
• Opposite branching