THE PIEDMONT: The bottomland forest communities

Bottomland forests

Three bottomland forest communities occur in the piedmont: the bald cypress-tupelo gum swamp forests, the hardwood bottoms, and the levee forests. These three communities also occur in the coastal plain. In the piedmont, however, the floodplains have a shorter flooding duration and a lower flooding depth, and the acreage in the piedmont is considerably less than in the coastal plain. In the piedmont, these communities are a minor component of the vegetation, whereas in the coastal plain they are a dominant component. The detailed description of the bottomland forest communities is given under the coastal plain section.

The following are wildflowers that are found only in the piedmont bottomland forests; shrubs include

painted buckeye (Aesculus sylvatica),
bladdernut (Staphylea trifolia),
and silky dogwood (Cornus amomum);

herbs include

golden ragwort (Senecio aureus),
little sweet Betsy (Trillium cuneatum),
virgin’s bower (Clematis virginiana),
yellow fumewort (Corydalis flavula),
and honewort (Cryptotaenia canadensis).