The area consists of a transition forest between the
southern Appalachian spruce–fir forest (which resembles forest types found at northern latitudes) and the mixed deciduous forests of temperate America.[4]
Trees
The following trees are at higher elevations:
Fraser fir[5] ("balsams" or "She balsams"). Forests of these trees appear black from a distance; however, these trees are declining due to the
balsam woolly adelgid.[6]
Red spruce[7] ("He balsams"). The red spruce is distinguished from the Fraser fir by having bark whose rosin cannot be milked (hence, "He balsams") and by having hanging cones.
^Sutton, Myron; Sutton, Ann (1985). Eastern forests (Audubon Society Nature Guides). New York: Knopf.
ISBN0-394-73126-3. p43
^USDA, NRCS (n.d.).
"Abies fraseri (Fraser fir)". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 15 June 2022.
^Frankenberg, Dirk (2000). Exploring North Carolina's Natural Areas: Parks, Nature Preserves, and Hiking Trails. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.
ISBN0-8078-4851-4. p343
^USDA, NRCS (n.d.).
"Picea rubens (red spruce)". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 15 June 2022.