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The plant palette of Bear Ridge pays homage to the Appalachian mixed mesophytic forest ecoregion and the cove forests tucked throughout. These forests, which are well represented in southeastern Ohio, are the most biodiverse areas in the state. Working off the old infrastructure of the Zoo’s “Bear Hill”, which conveniently portrays the limestone rock face of a gorge, we were able to bring the area to life. Walking through the habitat will hopefully bring to mind a hike in Adams County, Clifton Gorge, or maybe even the Smokies.

There are two significant botanical zones in Bear Ridge — the Adventure Trail at the upper viewing, and the bear habitat itself. Flanking these areas are textural plantings highlighting the diversity of our region’s native plants.

The Adventure Trail is an immersive botanical experience, a planting to step into as opposed to look at. The brief loop takes you through a densely planted micro-forest containing 30 trees, 40 shrubs and a groundcover layer of ferns, grasses, sedges, wildflowers and spring ephemerals, nestled in a raised planter roughly the size of six parking spaces. The canopy includes a bevy of oaks (scarlet, white, chinkapin), sugar maple, and Appalachian staples like sassafras, holly, sourwood, fringetree and bigleaf magnolia. Other unique plants include dog hobble, strawberry bush, wintergreen, false aloe and Virginia bluebells.

The bear habitat spills from the upper woodland like a natural glade, sprinkled with shrubs and trees like birch, loblolly pine, spicebush, flowering raspberry and meadowsweet. Beneath this woody structure lies a matrix of 700 mixed native grasses and sedges interplanted with mountain mint and beebalm.

Check out the Bear Ridge plant guide!