Oak Hickory Trail

Oak Hickory Trail length: 0.5 miles
From Visitors Center to trail: 0.1 mile
Round Trip: 1.1 miles

The entrance to this trail is off Valley Road, just above the Visitors Center. The Oak-Hickory Trail takes visitors through stands of oak and hickory, the dominant trees in this forest type. Oaks include, white oak, northern and southern red oak, black oak, scarlet oak, and chestnut oak. Mockernut and pignut hickory are prevalent along the trail, while shagbark and bitternut hickory may occasionally be found elsewhere on the Arboretum.

Before the chestnut blight destroyed most of the American chestnuts, this type of forest was dominated by oaks and chestnuts. Since the chestnut blight was gradual, hickories slowly took over where chestnuts had died. In the spring, numerous wildflowers can be seen along the trail. Trees have been labeled along the first part of the trail to help visitors identify common species. Trees along the final part of the trail have been numbered to provide visitors an opportunity to test their identification skills. Your identifications can be verified at the Visitors Center. The route back to the Visitors Center via Valley Road goes past the Dwarf and Unusual Conifer Collection.