| Mississippi Petrified Forest Flora, MS US Uploaded By Scott (webmaster) Uploaded on Wednesday, September 2, 2009 at 07:43:55 PM Viewed 19524 times |
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| You can look for petrified wood it sounds like at the Travel Channel's treasure wiki page for Mississippi. However, looking at the Petrified Forest website it is hard to tell. I think you can look near the park for the wood. Check out the Travel Channel website. The link for the travel channel's page is broken. Much of the info comes from Bill Reynolds, a columnist with Rock and Gem Magazine. Here is what the link used to say: "Most of the best petrified wood from Mississippi comes from trees which grew in the state during the Oligocene Epoch, around 30 million years ago. The Gulf of Mexico's shoreline extended further north at that time, which explains why the wood is found in the more northern parts of the state. This petrified wood formed when a tree was buried by sediment, and its tissues were replaced by silica in the groundwater. A variety of chalcedony, fossil wood replaced by chalcedony (silica), sometimes also by Opal. The material replacing the wood may vary. Most commonly, quartz, in the form of agate, opal, or jasper, will be the replacement material. Occasionally, limonite, carnotite (an uranium mineral), or other minerals will be the replacement material. Trace minerals included within the silica impart a variety of hues, ranging from black to blue to red. Handy to bring along: 1. Hand Pick 2. Rock Hammer 3. Rock Pack Helpful notes to newcomers: Tour the Petrified Forest. Wood can be collected over a large area in the ditches and stream near the park. The Mississippi Petrified Forest is a privately operated park and museum located at 124 Forest Park Road, Flora, Mississippi. This site has been known since the mid-19th century, but it was not until 1966 that it was named a Registered National Natural Landmark, and subsequently developed and opened to the public" | Directions can be found at the MS Petrified Forest directions page. The address is "Mississippi Petrified Forest 124 Forest Park Road P.O. Box 37, Flora, MS 39071" |