Steven's Creek Heritage Preserve is a

nature preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geolog ...

in the US State of

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. It is managed by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. It covers in McCormick County and Edgefield County, and was established to protect rare animal and plant species. Webster's Salamander and Miccosukee gooseberry are among the species which have few populations outside the preserve. The nearest population center is Clarks Hill, about two road miles (3–4 km) to the southwest. The site was identified in 1957 by Albert E. Radford of the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

. He noticed exceptional diversity in the

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

and

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

layers on the bluffs overlooking Steven's Creek, and documented six plant species which had been unknown in South Carolina up to that time. Another five species were known from only one other South Carolina location. Many of these rare species were plentiful at the site, and remain prominent there today. A remarkable feature of this plant community is that a palmetto, ''

Sabal minor ''Sabal minor'', commonly known as the dwarf palmetto, is a small species of Arecaceae, palm. It is native to the deep southeastern and south-central United States and northeastern Mexico. It is naturally found in a diversity of habitats, includi ...

'', occurs near northern inland wildflowers such as '' Asarum canadense''. Four

trillium ''Trillium'' (trillium, wakerobin, toadshade, tri flower, birthroot, birthwort, and sometimes "wood lily") is a genus of about fifty flowering plant species in the family Melanthiaceae. ''Trillium'' species are native to temperate regions of No ...

species are also present. Soils of the bluffs were found to be atypical for South Carolina. Most of the state's soils are acidic with pH near or below 5. However, some topsoils in the preserve had pH readings near 7 -- neutral on the scale. This is more typical of base-rich sites in

Appalachia Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...

n coves and the

Midwest The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

, where many plants rare to South Carolina are abundant. These soils correspond most closely to the Cartecay and Toccoa series which are loam or sandy loam-textured

Entisol Entisols are soils, as defined under USDA soil taxonomy, that do not show any profile development other than an A-horizon (or “A” horizon). Entisols have no diagnostic horizons, and are unaltered from their parent material, which could ...

s. Along Steven's Creek are alluvial silt loam

Inceptisol Inceptisols are a soil order in USDA soil taxonomy. They form quickly through alteration of parent material. They are more developed than Entisols. They have no accumulation of clays, iron oxide, aluminium oxide or organic matter. They have a ...

s of the Riverview series.Web Soil Survey
/ref> The majority of the preserve, away from the bluffs, is underlain by acidic sandy loam

Ultisol Ultisol, commonly known as red clay soil, is one of twelve soil orders in the USDA soil taxonomy, United States Department of Agriculture soil taxonomy. The word "Ultisol" is derived from "ultimate", because Ultisols were seen as the ultimate pr ...

s of the Cataula, Hiwassee, Louisburg, and Pacolet series typical of the South Carolina Piedmont. These upland soils support mixed pine and hardwood forest over most of the preserve except in the southwest corner which has pure stands of pine.

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