Pines on rocky summit

6 years ago

last modified: 6 years ago

Took advantage of a mild day & hiked to Monkeys Head Rock near Rocky Gap State Park -- western MD. The highest point there was a refuge for Table Mnt pine (Pinus pungens), tho there were some Virginia, white & a couple pitch pines on the way up. Hemlocks, tho, are making inroads in the understory, even on the rockiest, highest spots. Hope the hemlock aldelgid stays in check (couldn't find any on the hemlocks, tho they've been thru there some yrs ago). Some of the P pungens develop characteristic flat tops as can be seen. Trunk closeup shows a pitch pine -- see the characteristic needle-sprouts along the branches. Lastly some overlook pics:

Pitch pine below:

Overlook:

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plantkiller_il_5

6 years ago

Thanks for the hike Beng , it's good to get out of the house

oh wait .. I'm looking at a screen

ron

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Comments (7)

User
6 years ago
Very nice Beng!

Being in your neck of the woods in the recent past, I can appreciate these pictures all the more.

We're still dealing with 3 ft. of snow on the ground. :-)
bengz6westmd thanked User
L Clark (zone 4 WY)
6 years ago
That's some rugged country!
bengz6westmd thanked L Clark (zone 4 WY)
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alley_cat_gw_7b
6 years ago
That's a beautiful place. Nice photos!
The last time I was up there 270 was farm country.
bengz6westmd thanked alley_cat_gw_7b
bengz6westmd
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks, plantkiller, that made me laugh...

alley-cat, the urbanization hasn't yet reached Allegany County, MD -- it's like 80% forested! One of the reasons for the high percentage is so little flat land for agriculture. Washington Co just to the east has the Cumberland valley, so alot of agriculture there.
bengz6westmd
Original Author
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Oh yeah, Bill_minn, the 2 small trees in the lower part of the first overlook pic just showing above & beside the rock are eastern hemlocks.
User
6 years ago
haha! I saw many Tsuga c. from the bus window, just driving by, growing like weeds.

I have some seed stratifying from somewhere out that way but don't remember exactly where I found them. ;-)