Muir Creek forest nurse stump |
Sometimes trees don't even need to fall before other trees are growing on them. Often ancient old growth trees have large trees growing on their thick, debris-covered branches.
When trees fall, they can become nurse logs, providing nutrients for a new generation of trees. Sometimes the seeds don't wait until dead trees fall.
Serious roots reaching for the forest floor |
Eventually the stump will decay entirely leaving the hemlock on a cylinder of root stilts 10 meters high.
If the hemlock lives long enough, other trees may grow on its thick, upper branches.
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