Hiking Sligo Creek with John Parrish
February 28, 2004

Photo of upper portion of Sligo Creek

The upper portions of Sligo Creek are in the Piedmont Plateau Province- which includes rolling hills and has pools and riffles in the creek. The best places to find native plants are in areas that were not farmed (the tops of hills for example). In Upper Sligo there are knobs with old oak forest; these are good places to find native plants. In former pastures multifora rose and other invasives were able to establish themselves. Parklands that were former pastures have little native plant diversity. There are lots of hickory, oak and tulip poplar trees in upper Sligo Creek Park.

There was a lot of English Ivy and euonymus wintercreeper along many portions of the Park. These originated from homes. Private property owners can help by ensuring that English ivy plants don't grow up trees where it will flower and produce seeds. Homeowners who live next to the Park need to feel responsible for preventing spread of their ivy to parkland. We saw a lot of poison ivy vines on the trees. These are native. The poison ivy fruit is an important source of food for wildlife and should be left alone.
Picture of Flora Lane Tributary - seen from the path

We stopped by the Flora Lane Tributary near Forest Glen Road. The source of this tributary is the Forest Glen Metro sump pumps. The water in this stream is cold and clear. This provides a good habitat for sensitive fish, including the blue ridge sculpin. When there is a rainstorm, fish in the main stem of Sligo Creek can escape the polluted stormwater runoff by going up the Flora Lane Tributary.
Photo of steep sides of Sligo near Piney Branch Rd with Beech trees

Close to Piney Branch Road, Sligo Creek enters the Fall Line Gorge. This connects the Piedmont to the Atlantic Coastal Plain. This portion of the Park has steep sides and there is a sharp drop in elevation. In this portion of the Park, there are a lot of Beech trees, which are shade tolerant. The steep hills provide a lot of shady conditions and reduced sunlight. There was little farming due to the steep hills in this portion of the park, therefore, these are good areas to find native plants.
Sweet Gum tree near Parklawn Park between East-West Highway and Riggs Rd.

Downstream of New Hampshire Ave., the creek enters the Coastal Plain Province. The pools and riffles in Sligo Creek disappear and the landscape is flatter. The soil has more sand and gravel. Here sweet gum trees are common.
The PEPCO high voltage power line Right-of-Way near the Prince Georges County Line.

At the PEPCO high voltage lines (between New Hampshire Ave. and East West Highway) there is an opportunity to provide a unique meadow habitat for wildlife. PEPCO's landscaping practices, however, are a barrier. The grass was recently cut before the native plants have had a chance to flower and produce seed for meadow animals. Cover for wildlife also disappears once the grass is cut. By cutting the grass in the Right-of-Way later in the season, native plants and wildlife habitat can be established.

Six evergreens are native to Sligo Creek Park: