Laurentian-Acadian Pine-Hemlock-Hardwood Forest
This coniferous and mixed forest extends across the glaciated Northeast into Canada and the upper Midwest. Dominated by white pine, hemlock, and red oak, with maple, birch, and beech also common, it forms a transition between northern hardwood forests and Appalachian hemlock‑hardwoods. Many stands are early‑ or mid‑successional and shaped by past agriculture.
Subject Tags
- Forest
Summary
A coniferous or mixed forest widespread in the glaciated northeast. White pine, hemlock, and red oak are typical canopy dominants. Red maple is common, and other hardwoods like sugar maple, beech, and birch also occur. Red spruce and balsam fir are uncommon associates, and oaks besides red oak are essentially absent from these forests. This forest system may be considered transitional between northern hardwood forests at higher elevations and to the north, and the warmer Appalachian hemlockhardwoods and oak-pine forests at lower elevations and to the south. It ranges from the northeastern U.S. to adjacent Canada, and westward to the Great Lakes and upper Midwest. These forests are early and mid-successional in many areas, and often reflect an agricultural history