Trees

Characteristic canopy trees of Central Kentucky's Bluegrass Region are burr oak, shellbark hickory, Kentucky coffee tree, chinkapin oak, Shumard red oak, Ohio buckeye, and sugar maple. Additional mesophytic tree species of valley bottoms include American beech, tulip poplar, and basswood. A special type of community can develop in the flat valley bottoms in Bluegrass region transition zones associated with clay and sandy outwash from the Cumberland Plataeu - the Hydromesophytic Flatwoods. In flatwoods, swamp white oak, shingle oak, sweet gum, and black gum can grow in the mesophytic forest association with slight changes in elevation creating different plant community types.