Rare Species Restoration Study on Satulah Mountain
While hiking up on Satulah Mountain, some of you who have ventured past the summit on your way to
either to the cliffs or to Mushroom Rock may have noticed a small cleared area that was not there last
year. Over the past nine months, Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust (HCLT) staff and volunteers have worked
to create a small test area to look at how two rare species, the ground juniper (Juniperus communis var.
depressa) and Hartweg's locust (Robinia hartwegii) respond to the clearing.
Both of these species are quite extraordinary. The juniper population on Satulah is one of the very few
known populations in North Carolina and is believed to be the farthest south naturally occurring
population in the eastern US. Hartweg's locust is known to occur in only a few dozen sites in western
North Carolina and adjacent South Carolina and Georgia, with Satulah Mountain being regarded as one
of the best populations for the species. Both species require open, exposed patches in and around rock
outcrops in order to grow and reproduce.
A preliminary study a couple years ago by an HCLT intern from the Highlands Biological Station's
Institute for the Environment program found that there appeared to be only a very small fraction of the
junipers on Satulah that were reproducing, and that many appeared to be crowded by other, taller
woody shrubs such as mountain laurel, blueberries, and rhododendrons. Furthermore, plant experts
with the NC Plant Conservation Program and Natural Heritage Program suggested that creating an open
area could improve the conditions for both growth and reproduction for the juniper in particular, but
also the locust.
As a result, the Land Trust decided to clear a small area where there were a few junipers and locusts to
see if this would improve the growth, state, and reproduction of both species. Over a number of days,
HCLT staff and volunteers, cleared out all the trees and shrubs that were not the juniper and locust with
the exception of a large pitch pine. The area was raked to remove the pine needles and leaves to expose
the soil and any exposed stumps were cut. Then a fence was built using some of the trees and laurels
that had been cut down to block people from walking off the trail and trampling the study area. A small
sign was placed to inform folks about the study and to help keep the area undisturbed.
In 2016, HCLT hopes to have another intern look at the growth and reproduction of both species and see
if there were any noticeable improvements in the cleared area as compared to elsewhere on the
mountain and from the original data collected from the first study. If you have any questions or would
like to learn more, feel free to contact us anytime at [email protected] or 828-526-1111. Together
we are conserving valuable land resources for ours and future generations.