Beech–maple forest

[1] It is primarily composed of American beech and sugar maple trees which co-dominate the forest and which are the pinnacle of plant succession in their range.

[4] The ground cover includes herbs and spring ephemerals, flowers which are able to bloom before the canopy fills in.

[5] Seedlings of beech and maple trees are shade-tolerant, allowing them to grow in low light conditions for several years.

[4] Beech–maple forests are often found on flat or rolling terrain, in a variety of moist to well-drained soils with high levels of organic matter.

[11] The range of the beech–maple forest type extends from the Atlantic coast west to Minnesota, Michigan and from southern Canada south to Virginia and Tennessee.