Tag Archives: Georgia Trees & Shrubs

Moody Forest Natural Area, Appling County

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In 2001, the Nature Conservancy and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources purchased 3,500 acres from the Moody family, which had owned and managed the land for generation. Subsequent purchases by the state added another 1,000 acres and today the entire property is operated under a cooperative agreement between the two partners…The arrangement–the first public-private conservation partnership in the state–has proven to be more effective than either group could have hoped for… –From the Nature Conservancy’s Moody Forest Fact Sheet.

Cypress and tupelo are the dominant trees of the bottomlands at Moody Forest. Many of the trees are so old that they’re a wonder in themselves, a living monument to a wild Georgia that is all but gone.

Numerous natural ponds and wetlands can be found here throughout most of the year.

The forest borders the mighty Altamaha River, which is particularly beautiful here.

I’ve consistently found some of the largest sandbars on the river near Moody Forest.

Enjoy your time here and take the time to really look at the forest on your way out. Wildlife reigns supreme and you never know what you might see.

The Big Oak, Circa 1680, Thomasville

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Perhaps the most famous landmark in Thomasville, the Big Oak (Live Oak Quercus virginiana) is thought to be around 330 years old. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a frequent visitor to Thomas County’s hunting plantations and a photography buff himself, once had his driver stop at the tree while he made a picture from a neighboring front porch.

 

Old Growth American Sycamore, Tattnall County

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These photographs hardly do justice to this magnificent old giant. It got me wondering whatever happened to all the sycamores (Platanus occidentalis), which seemed to be quite common when I was a boy.

To get some perspective on the tree’s size, notice the tobacco barn to the left of the trunk.

Middleton Lake, Long County

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Middleton Lake is one of numerous oxbows of the Altamaha River.

Here in Long County, the fabled river is nearing its rendezvous with the Atlantic Ocean and is at its wildest.

This is a relatively unspoiled area, and important to the life of the estuary just beyond.

It’s known mostly to local fishermen and a few naturalists.

Tupelo (Nyssa) of a size large enough for a couple of men to stand inside are not unheard of.

Though it has been logged in the past, it’s now largely protected.

An interesting feature of Middleton Lake is this walkway, which I first thought might have been a log tramway. Ronnie Goode explains: “This walkway was built by my brother Jackie Goode & Frank McClelland Jr. around 1966. They built it for Brown Jones who was sheriff at that time. My granddaddy, Mr. Preston Gordon lived in a small cabin at the lake during the summer months and watched over the fishing in the lake. He lived there probably from 1952 till about 1958.“

 

Former National Champion Turkey Oak, Screven

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Across the street from  Screven United Methodist Church is this great Turkey Oak (Quercus laevis), once the National Champion of its species. The American Forestry Association’s National Registry of Big Trees named it to the listing in 1991, stating its dimensions as: 106″ circumference, 80′ high, with a crown dimension of 55′. Sandee Strickland notes that a tornado in 2005 did damage to some of the crown; another Turkey Oak, in Florida, is the current champion. Turkey Oak is a staple of sandhills and scrublands in the Deep South and most field guides suggest that they are rarely taller than 30′-50′, so this tree may still be the tallest extant of the species.

Titi, Wayne County

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Titi (Cyrilla racemiflora) is one of the emblematic plants of South Georgia, and blooms throughout the summer. It is though to have medicinal uses. There’s even a town named for the plant [Ty Ty, in Tift County]. In case you’re not from the South and were wondering, it’s pronounced tie-tie.