Natural Communities of North Georgia
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  • Piedmont
    • Piedmont Overview
    • Piedmont Mesic (Moist) Forests
    • PIedmont Oak-Pine-Hickory Forests
    • Piedmont Bottomland/Floodplain Forest
    • PIedmont Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • Montane Longleaf
    • Piedmont Prairies and Savannas (Upland)
    • Piedmont Wet Meadows and Marshes
    • Granite Outcrops
    • Piedmont Glades and Barrens
    • Ultramafic Barrens and Woodlands
    • Cliffs and Bluffs
    • Flatwoods (Upland Depression Swamps)
  • Blue Ridge
    • Blue Ridge Overview
    • Northern Hardwoods
    • Montane Oak Forests
    • Fertile Cove Forests
    • Acidic Cove Forests
    • Oak Forests
    • Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • High Elevation Outcrops
    • Mafic Dome Rock Outcrops
    • Rock Outcrops, Cliffs and Bluffs
    • Ultramafic Barrens and Woodlands
    • Mountain Bogs
    • Seepage Wetlands
    • Spray Cliffs
    • Montane Bottomlands and Flooplains
  • Cumberland Ridge & Valley
    • Cumberland Ridge & Valley Overview
    • Mesic Forests
    • Dry Calcareous Forests
    • Acidic Oak-Pine Forests
    • Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • Montane Longleaf
    • Calcareous (Cedar) Glades
    • Calcareous Cliffs
    • Calcareous Prairies and Barrens
    • Acidic Glades and Barrens
    • Acidic Cliffs and Outcrops
    • Flatwoods
    • Acidic Seepage Wetlands
    • Bottomlands and Flooplains
  • Plant Adaptations to Deciduous Forests
  • Plant Adaptations to Rock Outcrops
  • Impact of Rock Type on Plant Composition

Blue Ridge Spray Cliffs

​​Spray cliffs are wetlands that occur behind and next to waterfalls,  on cliffs and rocks  kept moist by the spray.  This community is well developed in the mountains because the steep mountain slopes allow the water to tumble down through deep ravines creating spray that is captured between the ravine walls.  These ever-moist areas keep temperatures more even than other places in the mountains. The plants in this natural community vary according to their location in relation to the spray and how often they are flooded:  ledges, pools at the base of the falls; rocky slopes and caves behind the spray can all host different species.
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What's special: Waterfall habitats are beautiful, due to the sights, sounds, and feel of the flowing, crashing waters and their spray.  In addition, some waterfall habitats harbor rare bryphytes that remain here, protected by the humid conditions, dating from times when the climate was both warmer and cooler, and provide habitat for amphibians. In the past, overhanging hemlocks added a soft, evergreen element, but the trees are declining due to the non-native woolly adelgid.
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Related communities:  Usually acidic cove forests will border waterfalls and will interfinger with this community.  Many of the plants in spray cliffs are also found in Seepage Wetlands due to the seepage here. 
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​Plants

Click on the plant names for images.  Plant lists are in alphabetical order by scientific name.
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Trees
Red maple  Acer rubrum
Black birch Betula lenta
Eastern hemlock  Tsuga canadensis 

Shrubs and Woody Vines
Tag alder  Alnus serrulata
Mountain sweet pepper-bush  Clethra acuminata  
Climbing hydrangea  Decumaria barbara 
Witch-hazel  Hamamelis virginiana 
Smooth hydrangea  Hydrangea arborescens
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Mountain laurel  Kalmia latifolia
Mountain doghobble  Leucothoe fontanesiana 
Great laurel/lRosebay rhododendron  Rhododendron maximum 
Yellowroot  Xanthorhiza simplicissima (sub-shrub)

Ground layer
Wildflowers
Jack-in-the-pulpit  Arisaema triphyllum 
Brook saxifrage  Boykinia aconitifolia  
White turtlehead  Chelone glabra 
Umbrella leaf  Diphylleia cymosa  
Hollow-stem Joe-pye-weed  Eutrochium fistulosum
Galax  Galax urceolata
Small-flower alumroot Heuchera parviflora 
Rock alumroot Heuchera villosa
Thyme-leaf bluet  Houstonia serpyllifolia 
Cliff/Michaux's saxifrage  Hydatica petiolaris
Orange jewelweed  Impatiens capensis
Great blue lobelia  Lobelia siphilitica 
Virginia bugleweed  Lycopus virginicus
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Early saxifrage Micranthes virginiensis
Sundrops Oenothera fruticosa
Cowbane  Oxypolis rigidior
Kidney-leaved grass-of-Parnassus  Parnassus asarifolia 
Lady-rue Thalictrum clavatum 
Foamflower Tiarella cordifolia
Tassel-rue  Trautvetteria caroliniensis
Sweet white violet  Viola blanda

Ferns and Fern Allies
Northern maidenhair fern  Adiantum pedatum (especially over mafic or calcareous rocks)
Meadow spikemoss  Lycopodiodes apodum
New York fern Parathelypteris novaboracensis
Rockcap fern Polypodium virginianum

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Mosses
Delicate fern moss  Thuidium delicatulum
​Representative Trees in order by scientific name
Representative shrubs in order by scientific name
Tag alder (Alnus serrulata) with developing female cones. J. Pakchar
Mountain sweet pepperbush (Clethra acuminata) by Richard and Teresa Ware
Witch-haze (Hamamelis virgniana) flowers (bloom before leaf-out) by Richard and Teresa Ware
Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) by J. Pakchar
Doghobble (Leucothoe fontansiana) by J. Pakchar
Great/rosebay rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum) by Richard and Teresa Ware
Great laurel (Rhododendron maxiumum) by J. Pakchar
Yellowroot (Xanthorhiza simplicissima) in flower. J. Pakchar

​Representative ground layer, in order by scientific name

Jack-in-the-pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) by Hugh and Carol Nourse
White turtlehead (Chelone glabra) by Hugh and Carol Nourse
Umbrella leaf (Diphylleia cymosa) by Hugh and Carol Nourse
Cliff/Michaux's saxifrage (Hydatica petiolaris) by Hugh and Carol Nourse
Galax (Galax urceolata) by J. Pakchar
Rock alumroot (Heuchera villosa). L. Edwards
Orange jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) by J. Pakchar
Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica) by L. Edwards
Early saxifrage (Michranthes virginiensis) by Richard and Teresa Ware
Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa) L. Edwards
Grass-of-Parnassas (Parnassus asarifolia) by Hugh and Carol Nourse
Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia) and New York fern (Parathelypteris novaboracensis) by J. Pakchar
Thalictrum by Hugh and Carol Nourse
Yellowroot (Xanthorhiza simplicissima) with flowers and woody stem by J. Pakchar

Ferns in order by scientific name
Picture

​Contents of this site are based on the book The Natural Communities of Georgia,

This site is a work in progress: comments and suggestions are welcome.  Email: ​[email protected]

  • Home
  • Piedmont
    • Piedmont Overview
    • Piedmont Mesic (Moist) Forests
    • PIedmont Oak-Pine-Hickory Forests
    • Piedmont Bottomland/Floodplain Forest
    • PIedmont Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • Montane Longleaf
    • Piedmont Prairies and Savannas (Upland)
    • Piedmont Wet Meadows and Marshes
    • Granite Outcrops
    • Piedmont Glades and Barrens
    • Ultramafic Barrens and Woodlands
    • Cliffs and Bluffs
    • Flatwoods (Upland Depression Swamps)
  • Blue Ridge
    • Blue Ridge Overview
    • Northern Hardwoods
    • Montane Oak Forests
    • Fertile Cove Forests
    • Acidic Cove Forests
    • Oak Forests
    • Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • High Elevation Outcrops
    • Mafic Dome Rock Outcrops
    • Rock Outcrops, Cliffs and Bluffs
    • Ultramafic Barrens and Woodlands
    • Mountain Bogs
    • Seepage Wetlands
    • Spray Cliffs
    • Montane Bottomlands and Flooplains
  • Cumberland Ridge & Valley
    • Cumberland Ridge & Valley Overview
    • Mesic Forests
    • Dry Calcareous Forests
    • Acidic Oak-Pine Forests
    • Pine-Oak Woodlands
    • Montane Longleaf
    • Calcareous (Cedar) Glades
    • Calcareous Cliffs
    • Calcareous Prairies and Barrens
    • Acidic Glades and Barrens
    • Acidic Cliffs and Outcrops
    • Flatwoods
    • Acidic Seepage Wetlands
    • Bottomlands and Flooplains
  • Plant Adaptations to Deciduous Forests
  • Plant Adaptations to Rock Outcrops
  • Impact of Rock Type on Plant Composition