Balsam fir may be a component in some stands. Tamarack typically dominates on the former soils, and northern white cedar on the latter. A continuous sphagnum moss mat is not present.
Coniferous swamps occur primarily in and north of the vegetation tension zone.
However, several large tamarack swamps occur south of the tension zone. Landscape position is an ancient lakebed in the nearly level, sandy outwash of the Anoka Sandplain. Lupton muck is typically saturated to the surface. During September through May, the seasonal high water table can vary from 12 inches of standing water to a water table 12 inches below the surface. Cedar Bog Lake, Cedar Creek Natural History Area, Anoka County, Minnesota.