bald
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bald noun A treeless area surrounded by forest on a mountain summit or slope, either a grass bald or heath bald. [DARE labels this term “chiefly South Midland, especially Southern Appalachians, Ozarks”]
1890 Carpenter Thunderhead Peak 139 The mountains are entirely wooded, except on a few summits, called “balds,” where the treeless tracts are covered with luxuriant grass and patches of bush breast-high. 1913 Kephart Our Sthn High 42 The best pasturage is high up in the mountains, where there are “balds” covered with succulent wild grass that resembles Kentucky blue grass. 1960 Stupka Great Smoky Mts 18 There are treeless areas on some of the higher mountaintops and ridges. Owing to their lack of forest cover, such places are called balds.That designation, however, is a relative one since other plants form a dense carpet over the balds. If these plants are largely shrubs belonging to the heath family, such balds are known as heath balds; if grasses and sedges prevail, the balds are termed grass balds. 1991 Walker Great Smoky Mts 32 The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has two different types of balds, grassy balds and heath balds. The grassy variety is predominantly grass-covered, while the heath balds, or laurel slicks as they are sometimes called, appear to be grassy from a distance but upon closer contact it is apparent that it is an extremely dense thicket of shrub.