Northern Ontario Plant Database

Northern Ontario Vegetation Type (V-type)

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C-V25: Trembling Aspen - White Birch - White Spruce - White Pine - Red Pine - Beaked Hazel - Mountain Maple

Summary: A mixedwood stand dominated by trembling aspen and white birch, with lesser quantities of white spruce, white pine, red pine, balsam fir, and red maple in the main canopy. The subcanopy contains several hardwood and softwood tree species, but none with more than 50% frequency. The regeneration layer is dominated by balsam fir, red maple, white pine, and white spruce. Beaked hazel and mountain maple are the most common tall shrubs, though a variety of low shrubs also occur, including bush honeysuckle, Canada fly honeysuckle, and lowbush blueberry.

The herb layer is similar to that of type C-V24 and, in addition to the characteristic boreal forest species, includes rose twisted-stalk and spinulose woodfern. Schreber's feathermoss occurs in the herb layer with only 30-50% frequency.

This vegetation type is similar to C-V24, however, C-V25 is characterized by the presence of white pine, red pine, and Canada fly honeysuckle, but lacks significant amounts of black spruce, velvetleaf blueberry, and Schreber's feathermoss.

Soil & Ecosite Types: The Trembling Aspen-White Birch-White Spruce-White Pine-Red Pine-Beaked Hazel-Mountain Maple Vegetation Type (C-V25) occurs most commonly on fresh to very fresh (S7) or dry to moderately fresh (S3) coarse loamy to silty soils, but may occasionally be found on slightly moister soils. This vegetation type was described from the northeastern portions of Site Regions 4E and 5E, mainly from Site Districts 4E-4 (northern North Bay region), and 4E-3 (northern Sudbury region). C-V25 can be found on a variety of ecosite types, including types C-ES 17.2 (Poplar-White Birch, fresh to moist), C-ES 18.1 (Poplar-White Birch-White Spruce-Balsam Fir, dry to moderately fresh), C-ES 18.2 (Poplar-White Birch-White Spruce-Balsam Fir, fresh to moist), C-ES 19.1 (Poplar-Jack Pine-White Spruce-Black Spruce, dry to moderately fresh), C-ES 19.2 (Poplar-Jack Pine-White Spruce-Black Spruce, fresh to moist), C-ES 20.1 (White Pine-Red Pine-White Spruce-White Birch-Trembling Aspen, dry to moderately fresh), C-ES 20.2 (White Pine-Red Pine-White Spruce-White Birch-Trembling Aspen, fresh to moist), and C-ES 21.1 (White Cedar-White Pine-White Birch-White Spruce, dry to moderately fresh), and less frequently on ecosite types C-ES 17.1 (Poplar-White Birch, dry to moderately fresh) and C-ES21.2 (White Cedar-White Pine-White Birch-White Spruce, fresh to moist).

Note: In sample plots, species listed below occurred with 50% frequency or more, except for those in square brackets, which occurred with 30-49% frequency.

Trees:

overstorey

trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides)
white birch (Betula papyrifera)
[white spruce (Picea glauca)]
[white pine (Pinus strobus)]
[red pine (Pinus resinosa)]
[balsam fir (Abies balsamea)]
[red maple (Acer rubrum)]

subcanopy

[white birch (Betula papyrifera)]
[balsam fir (Abies balsamea)]
[white spruce (Picea glauca)]
[white cedar (Thuja occidentalis)]
[red maple (Acer rubrum)]

regeneration

balsam fir (Abies balsamea)
red maple (Acer rubrum)
white birch (Betula papyrifera)
white spruce (Picea glauca)
[trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides)]

Shrubs:

tall shrubs

beaked hazel (Corylus cornuta)
mountain maple (Acer spicatum)
[showy mountain ash (Sorbus decora)]

low shrubs

bush honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera)
Canada fly honeysuckle (Lonicera canadensis)
lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium)
[velvetleaf blueberry (Vaccinium myrtilloides)]

Dwarf Shrubs and Herbs:

dwarf shrubs

twinflower (Linnaea borealis)

forbs

bluebead lily (Clintonia borealis)
wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis)
wild lily-of-the-valley (Maianthemum canadense)
starflower (Trientalis borealis)
largeleaf aster (Eurybia macrophylla)
bunchberry (Cornus canadensis)
goldthread (Coptis trifolia)
rose twisted-stalk (Streptopus lanceolatus)

Ferns and Fern Allies:

ferns

bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum)
[spinulose woodfern (Dryopteris carthusiana)]

clubmosses

ground pine (Lycopodium dendroideum or Lycopodium obscurum)

Bryophytes:

[Schreber's feathermoss (Pleurozium schreberi)]

Lichens:

[common powderhorn (Cladonia coniocraea)]