Vancouver Island |Cowichan
Mt. Washington| Cathedral Grove

Forest Eco-Systems | Plants | News

Cathedral Grove Plants
by Kate Shepherd & Jamie Woodford

Cathedral Grove is home to a variety of plant species. Some of these species include ferns, Devil’s Club, Salmonberries, as well as various types of mosses and fungi.

This type of fern is living throughout Cathedral Grove. It is a fern that thrives in moist forests at low to middle elevations. In this area Sword Ferns will grow up to 1.5 metres tall. Their leaves are one pinnate, they have alternating leaflets with pointed, sharp incurved spine tips, each with a small lobe pointing forward at the bottom. Sword Ferns are shade-tolerant. It prefers cool climates on nitrogen rich soils. Sword Fern persists on cutover sites, is sporadic to scattered on water-shedding sites and is plentiful to abundant on water receiving sites enriched by surface flow of fine organic materials.

Sword Fern (Polystichum Munitum)

Sword ferns were once used by Northwest Coast Peoples as a protective layer in traditional pit ovens. They also used Sword Fern for flooring and bedding.

Devil’s Club (Opopanax Horridus)

Although untouched by deer; elk and bear are attracted to the bright red berries. The sharp spines themselves on the plant are not poisonous, but they can break off into the skin, and are difficult to remove. The sores can then become easily infected.
 
Devil's Club is a relative of ginseng, and was an important medicinal plant among aboriginal peoples. It has been extensively used in the treatment of diabetes, arthritis, rheumatism, digestive disorders, colds, skin problems, and many other conditions.
 
Devil's Club can also be an important restoration species to forests. Its spreading foliage provides good summer stream cover, it spreads easily through layering, and its spiny stems help protect stream edges from human predators.


Salmonberry (Rubus Spectabilis)

This relative of the raspberry grows in thickets in moist to wet areas of forests. They grow from sea level to the sub-alpine zone and are commonly found in avalanche chutes and along stream banks. Salmonberry stalks are covered in thorns. They grow up to 4 metres tall. The leaves are dark green and sharply toothed. During the early summer bright purplish-pink flowers bloom and in late July or August delicate, edible berries ripen. The colour of the berries ranges from yellow to deep red and are edible.

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Directions to Cathedral Grove

· From Nanaimo, head north on the Inland Island Hwy.

· Turn left on Hwy. 4 (the Port Alberni highway).

· The park is just past the west end of Cameron Lake.

· The 50-kilometer drive takes about half an hour.

· The road is narrow and twisting.
 

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