Description
There are 68 identified prairies in the National Forest, locally called cedar fields, which avoided agriculture development due to their purchase by lumber companies. Harrell Hill contains the "largest and least disturbed" example of the Jackson Prairie in Mississippi. The Jackson Prairie is a disjunct of the Blackbelt (or Black Prairie) physiographic area in Mississippi and Alabama.
The alkaline soils (pH greater than 7.5) ensure a unique plant ecology unlike the nearby woodlands of Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda). Common grasses include Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans), Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)), Broomsedge Bluestem (A. virginicus var. virginicus), Bushy Broomsedge (A. glomeratus), and Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum). Other herbaceous plants include Yellow Coneflower (Rudbeckia pinnata), Eastern Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), Blazing Star (Liatris spp.), False Boneset (Brickellia eupatorioides var. eupatorioides), Green Milkweed (Asclepias hirtella), Green Comet Milkweed (A. viridiflora), Purple Prairie Clover (Dalea purpurea var. purpurea), White Prairie Clover (D. candida var. candida), Aster (Symphyotrichum spp.), Tick-trefoil (Desmodium spp.), Rosepink (Sabatia angularis), Smooth Oxeye (Heliopsis helianthoides), Little-leaved Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolium) and Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa).
It is also an example of the geophysical transformation of the Mississippi River delta.
Read more about this topic: Harrell Prairie Botanical Area
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