Photographic History of Forest Encroachment in Several Relict Prairies of the Edge of Appalachia Preserve System, Adams County, Ohio

Author Institution: Botany Department, Miami UniversityForest encroachment into several relict prairies located within the Edge of Appalachia Preserve System, Adams County, Ohio, was studied using a series of U.S.D.A. aerial photographs taken in 1938, 1950, 1965, and 1971. The corresponding photointerpretations reveal increased herbaceous cover after abandonment of cultivated field sites and illustrate the conversion of prairie and prairie glades to forest. All sites studied exhibited decreased percentage of prairie from 1938—1971