Beech-Maple Mesic Forest in Michigan, USA. This forest is dominated by American beech and sugar maple, which together make up over 80% of the canopy composition. The soil is loamy with high nutrient and organic content. In the spring, this forest boasts of a high diversity of ephemeral wildflowers. The forest grows along the top of an esker consisting of sand and gravel deposited by glacial meltwater around 15,000 years ago. The trail through this area was an old logging road and is evidence of timber harvesting in this forest.