Dismore Woods

Dismore Woods, KY

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TOPIC: Dinsmore Woods, KY
http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees/browse_thread/thread/34ff14d87a4a7bcc?hl=en
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== 1 of 1 ==
Date: Thurs, Feb 7 2008 7:26 pm
From: "Dale Luthringer"

ENTS,

On 9/29/07 my wife & I took a trip down to Northern Kentucky, just
across the Ohio state line and west of Cincinnati. We had the
opportunity to spend a couple of hours in the Dinsmore State Nature
Preserve, due west of Florence, KY. Here is some info I gleaned from
the following websites:

---------------------
http://www.naturepreserves.ky.gov/stewardship/dinsmore.htm

"Dedicated May 16, 1990, Dinsmore Woods State Nature Preserve is a
106-acre area owned by The <http://nature.org/> Nature Conservancy. The
preserve protects a relatively undisturbed maple-oak-ash forest in Boone
County. Prior to the conservancy's ownership, the woods had been in the
possession of one family dating back to the 1830s. The maturity and
species composition of this woodland are attributed in part to the fact
that it has never been commercially logged. The preserve is adjacent to
the Dinsmore Homestead, west of Burlington."

http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/kentucky/preserves
/art10905.html
"What to See: Plants
This relatively undisturbed old growth woodland is a mixed hardwood
forest. Sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and white ash (Fraxinus americana)
abound, as well as several species of oak (Quercus):
* white (Q. alba)
* red (Q. rubra)
* shumard (Q. shumardii)
* chinquapin (Q. Muhlenbergii)
The understory is a diverse mix of wildflowers including dwarf larkspur
(Delphinium tricorne), wood poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum) and trout lily
(Erythronium americanum)."

Directions to the site state that there is a relatively undisturbed old
growth woodland, and that the trail is on the north side of KY18. In my
haste to explore the site, we got out of the car at the main parking
lot, ~150 yards south of KY18, and took the first large trail we saw
that was adjacent to the parking lot, complete with a 'Dinsmore Woods'
sign. The problem is that we were on the SOUTH side of the road and on
the wrong side of KY18 to where the old growth was supposed to be. To
make a long story short, we ended up exploring an area that wasn't what
I intended, although we still found some neat stuff. So, if anyone
visits this site in the future, please make sure to find the trail on
the north side of KY18 that will supposedly lead you into a relatively
undisturbed maple-oak-ash old growth forest.

The south trail we took was still in the nature preserve, and quickly
lead us down the edge of a shallow ravine dominated by mature sycamore
and tuliptrees. This shallow ravine area had the tallest trees on the
south side of RT18 with a handful of sycamores and tulips into the 120ft
class. The surprise of the day though was a tall common hackberry
growing about halfway up the slope of the ravine which went to 6.4ft CBH
x 100.6ft high. This is the first hackberry I've measured over 100ft.
It's taller than any others I've measured north of 38degrees latitude.
Will, do you guys have any 100footers documented yet in your travels?

The ground leveled out towards the bottom of the ravine into a large
flat and associated small meandering stream. Once out of the ravine,
the forest went to mature to fairly young, my guess is that it was an
old pasture that had long grown into forest. Still, it had a nice
assortment of species that I rarely get a chance to measure up north.
The stream had an assortment of box elder, shagbark & bitternut
hickories, N. red oak, with what I believe were a few scattered umbrella
magnolia. Hackberry, honey locust, and swamp white oak were a much
smaller cohort. Patches of big tooth aspen were also present. One
turned out to be a personal tallest measured at 7.9ft CBH x 121.9ft
high.

A network of criss-cross trails ran up and down this small watershed and
around the surrounding valley. We walked about a 1/2 mile along the
stream and found a few fat sycmamores, but no other trees of any real
stature. It wasn't going to be worth the effort to explore some of the
small side drainages that came in further south. We were running out of
time, since we had to long drive home to look forward to. Here's the
day's talley:

Species CBH Height Comments

Big tooth aspen 5.3 111.1+
Big tooth aspen 7.9 121.9 personal tallest
measure, 38 59.780N x 84 48.763W
Bitternut hickory N/A 49.6+
Bitternut hickory N/A 81.1+
Black walnut 5 87.1+
Black walnut 4.5 105.1+
Box elder 5.2 69.1+
Common hackberry N/A 72.1+
Common hackberry 4.4 72.1+
Common hackberry 6.4 100.6 tallest known north of 38
59.853N x 84 48.858W
Honey locust 4.7 81.1+
N. red oak N/A 75.1+
N. red oak N/A 99.1+
N. red oak 6.9 102.1+
Shagbark hickory 8.7 96.1+
Shagbark hickory 5.1 99.3+
Slippery elm N/A 73.6+
Swamp white oak 9.9 87.1+
Sycamore 16.2(2x) 99.1+ CBH at 6.6ft up, adjacent
to stream
Sycamore 10.8 114.1+
Sycamore N/A 115.4+
Sycamore 12.2 126.1+ initial ravine with
hackberry
Tuliptree 7.9 117.1+
Tuliptree 9.3 120.1+
Umbrella magnolia 0.9 33

We were able to get a preliminary RI of 102.45. I'm hoping that in
future trips we might be able to see some better stuff on the north side
of the highway.

Dinsmore Woods RI
Species CBH Height

Sycamore 12.2 126.1+
Big tooth aspen 7.9 121.9
Tuliptree 9.3 120.1+
Black walnut 4.5 105.1+
N. red oak 6.9 102.1+
Common hackberry 6.4 100.6
Shagbark hickory 5.1 99.3+
Swamp white oak 9.9 87.1+
Honey locust 4.7 81.1+
Bitternut hickory N/A 81.1+

Dale

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Feb 9 2008 9:04 am
From: Randy Brown

Interesting. On the flatlands of NW Ohio they grow just as big/tall
as oaks. Thought they do tend to be quite a bit rarer.
Maybe you should look in the river bottoms? I don't see them in the
hills much at all.

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sat, Feb 9 2008 7:15 pm
From: djluthringer@pennswoods.net

Randy,

So far, that's where I've tended to find them. I was surprised to see one in
the ravine that far away from the main stream, but it was in very damp soil.

Dale

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Mon, Feb 11 2008 5:39 pm
From: dbhguru@comcast.net

Doug,

Wow! That is one impressive hackberry. It further substantiates what Lee and Paul said about Warren Woods. I'm going to do my best to visit the site this coming summer. Maybe we can meet up there.

Bob

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