I thought this was a really nice article to help people take ownership of their young forests.

The article covers most of what has been mentioned before, the seasons of a forest, the herbaceous layer or flowers, the shrubs, the wildlife and of course the trees. I will continue to discuss indicator species. The article does not mention the Slate Colored Dark Eyed Junco. It focuses on what is easy to relate to and it is well done.

When I look at that picture, I see a harvested farm field with an edge forest in the background. I don't know how big the forest is, but, there will be "edge" species that live in the forest. The sky is beautiful and the mountains are breathtaking even at the ground level. Autumn colors, called senescence by botanists, is in full swing with a bare tree in the foreground. There is an herbaceous layer that continues to cover the ground and protect the soil during winter.

Adirondack Northern Hardwood Forest: (click here) The rich tapestry of hardwoods that characterizes the northern hardwood forest is conveniently seen in the autumn, when the orange and yellows of birch and aspen contrast with the orange-reds of maples. Autumn colors from the Old Orchard Loop at Heaven Hill. (6 October 2018).

The northern hardwood forest is the most extensive woodland in the Adirondacks. It occupies the region's best soils and sites, growing on the more fertile soils that make up glacial till. The northern hardwood forest is generally found on the lower and warmer mountainsides – gentle slopes where soils are neither extremely dry nor extremely wet.

The most dominant life form in the northern hardwood forest are deciduous trees, which lose their leaves each fall and are almost completely dormant in the winter months. One of the most striking characteristics of the northern hardwood forest is the extravagant display of fall colors, which results from the loss of green pigment, chlorophyll, as the trees slow down their photosynthesis in the autumn and prepare to enter dormancy for the winter. With the chlorophyll gone, pigments which were hidden previously become visible, producing the vibrant reds of the Sugar Maple and the golden yellows of the American Beech.

Northern hardwood forests in the Adirondacks can be recognized from afar by the color and pattern of foliage.

• In spring, before leaf-out, the grey-brown pattern of unleafed branches contrasts with the somber dark green expanse of conifers both above and below the hardwoods.
• In summer, hardwood forests can be distinguished by areas of bright green foliage.
• In fall, the oranges, yellows, and reds of deciduous trees stand out against the dark greens of the conifers....