Mountain Laurel, Kalmia latifolia

This guide was produced by the Deptford Township Environmental Commission with a grant from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

Big Timber Creek is 11 miles long and drains an area of 63 square miles. It has 9 major tributaries and 6 lakes. Much of its lower portion forms the border of Gloucester and Camden Counties.

The Armewamexes branch of the Lenni-Lennape Indians lived in many settlements along the creek. The first European settlement was Fort Nassau, built by the Dutch at the mouth of the creek in 1623. The colonization of the creek began on the 1670’s with the arrival of the Quakers and Irish. Many settled along the creek, which was used for transportation because there were no early roads other than Indian trails.                                                            

Big Timber Creek was named for the large amounts of timber that grew along its banks. Much of this was harvested and floated to the Philadelphia Ship Yard. The Brewer Ship Yard was located near Chews Landing and the Black Horse Pike and built boats on the creek from the early 1800’s to the 1880s.

Station #2 Virginia Pines

The Virginia Pine is a southern species that reaches its northern limit in New Jersey and is the most common pine tree in this part of the Big Timber Creek Watershed. It also called the scrub or Jersey pine.It has short needles in clusters of two and scaly, brownish-red bark. It grows up to 80 feet tall with a diameter of 2 feet. The largest recorded tree was 114 feet tall with a diameter of 32 inches. It is used for pulpwood and railroad ties but seldom used for lumber.

It grows in poor, sandy soils and produces cones almost yearly which stay on the tree from three to five years. It is a pioneer plant that grows in old fields after grasses become established. Its seeds are eaten by birds, and squirrels nest in its high branches.Other conifers found in the watershed include the short-leaf yellow pine, red cedar, and Atlantic white cedar.

Station # 3 Oaks and Other Trees

Along the trail there are many kinds of trees including white oak, post oak, chestnut oak, sassafras, American holly, and beech. Oaks are members of the beech family of trees with 65 species found in North America and about 900 species world wide.

Oaks are divided into two groups. Whites oaks have blunt leaves and their acorns mature in one year.Black oaks have pointed leaves and their acorns mature in two years. The white and chestnut oak can grow up to 80 feet tall. They are an important commercial hardwood and were used in early shipbuilding in the area. Many animals feed on their acorns including birds, squirrels, chip monks, mice, and turkeys.

Big Timber Creek was once very polluted. By the 1980’s nearly 20% of its volume was poorly treated sewage. In 1987 the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ranked Big Timber Creek as one of the most polluted bodies of water in New Jersey. The modern county sewage treatment plants, which were built to comply with the United States Clean Air and Water Act, came on line in the late 1980’s and the creek’s water quality greatly improved.

Many species of fish and waterfowl returned to the creek. Areas that were once mud flats returned with many species of wetlands plants. The light vegetation in the photograph on the right is wild rice and is common to the tidal areas.

Station #5 Wetlands Seep Area

The cinnamon fern is common in wooded wetlands and is named for its reddish frond that ripens in July. When it emerges it resembles a fiddle head and it grows up to 3 feet tall.Other plants found here include red maple, arrowwood, sensitive fern, spotted touch me not, kidney leaf buttercup, common blue violet (New Jersey’s state flower), cat briar, marsh marigold, and mosses.

These decaying logs are being eaten by fungi which breaks down the trees woody tissue and converts it to food. Fungi are one of the few organisms that can digest wood.There are many kinds of insects found here including termites. They play an important role in breaking down the wood so other plants can reuse it stored nutrients. Ants and beetles are also common and feed on wood, vegetation, and other insects.

Lichens and mosses are found on logs, trees, and on the ground along the trail. Lichens are plants made of algae and fungi growing together. The algae produces food through photosynthesis and the fungi supplies water and minerals. The British soldier lichen is the most common, grows to 3/4 on an inch tall, and can be recognized by its bright red cap.

Mosses are small green plants with short stems and tiny leaves. They grow in mats and are valuable because they are able to soak up rain water and slowly release it into the soil. There are 274 species of mosses found in New Jersey

There are many kinds of plants, shrubs, ferns, and mosses that grow in the maple swamp.The red maple is the most common tree found in the wetlands. It has smooth, light gray bark, leaves with 3 to 5 lobes, and grows up to 80 feet tall. Its leaves turn bright red in the fall and it is also called the swamp or scarlet maple. Colonist made dye and ink from its bark.

The mountain laurel is a member of the heath family, has shiny, green leaves, large clusters of white flowers, and blooms in late may. Its hard wood was used for tool handles and tobacco pipes.

There are many kinds of wildlife that rely on the Big Timber Creek. The red tail hawk hunts for rodents and roosts in the large oak trees at Timber Creek Park. Other common birds include the red bellied and downy woodpecker, Carolina chickadee, wood thrush, junco, cardinal, house wren, blue jay, American crow, gold finch, robin, and house finch. The gray squirrel, cotton tail rabbit, chip monk, box turtle, and garter snake are also found here.

Big Timber Creek is home to many kinds of fish including yellow and white perch, largemouth and striped bass, channel catfish, carp, chain pickerel, American eel, and sunfish. Migratory species such as American shad and river herring have returned. Freshwater clams are common on the creek bottom and blue claw crabs visit when there are low water conditions in the Delaware River.