Vegetation of New England and The Maritime Provinces - Flora

Flora

The forests of this area were radically cleared for agricultural land by the 19th century and then renewed as many of these farms were abandoned following the opening up of California and the rest of the American west. Today the area is largely a mosaic of habitats influenced locally by micro-climatic differences (especially proximity to the Atlantic, and ecological disturbances. Essentially, there are four important community types which show considerable diversity and blending across this physiographic province. These communities are: alpine communities on the highest mountains, coniferous forests, northern hardwood forests, and wetlands. There are no clear boundaries between the coniferous forests and the hardwood forests in the New England-Acadian ecoregion. The prevalence in the canopy of red pine (Pinus resinosa) and red spruce (Picea rubens) distinguish the transition forests of New England from those in the Great Lakes region to the west.

The vegetation of the New England and Maritime Appalachian Highlands is similar throughout the Nova Scotia highlands including the Cobequid Hills and the Pictou-Antigonish Highlands on the mainland and the Cape Breton Highlands, the Chaleur Uplands of New Brunswick, the New England Uplands, the White Mountains and Mont Mégantic on the New Hampshire/Quebec border, the Green Mountains of Vermont and their southern extension the Sutton Mountains, and the Taconic Mountains. Some of western Vermont is in the Adirondack province, but generally exhibits similar vegetation.

Areas of particular interest include areas of serpentine rocks, peat bog and fen.