Hello Gardeners, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. Camden naturalist Austin Jenkins( see his blog at Saunter in the Sandhills) started our walk to Savage Bay Heritage Preserve by talking about the iconic trees found in the sandhills that surround this bay. Black Jack oak and Turkey oak are scrubby little trees that have adaptions, such as changing the orientation of their leaves to reduce transpiration, which allow them to live in such a harsh environment. Two new to me trees Austin identified for us were the blue jack oak, which has a glaucous cast to the back of its thick leaf and the beautiful dwarf sandhills post oak. Persimmons also abounded, with early fall color and a blocky trunk on larger specimens..
Last but not least ong-leaf pines, which caln spend years in the grass stage developing a tap root that will let them live in those water-starved soils.
