Releve Virginia Division of Natural Heritage, see http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural_heritage/documents/nh_plotform_instructions.pdf
Overall Taxon Cover Values are Automatically Calculated?
no
Stem Observation Area
400
m²
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(2) classification plot: sufficient for inclusion in a classification revision
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Tree Height
38
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
8
m
Tree Cover
95
%
Shrub Cover
35
%
Field Cover
55
%
Nonvascular Cover
2
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot location: in ravine just upslope from "Fern Hollow" Trail, 0.48 km NNW of Beverly Mill. Permanently marked with a metal tree tag (see report/form for sketch). Rock types present: small boulders and fragments of Eh phyllite and quartz.
A fairly diverse, secondary mesophytic forest situated in a south-facing, lower-slope ravine. Very tall, well-formed Liriodendron tulipifera currently dominates the overstory, which also contains some Quercus spp., Carya spp., and Nyssa sylvatica. Carya spp. generally dominate the understory, suggesting a long-term successional trend. Although soil pH, Ca, and Mg are not very high, samples collected from this site have notably high Mn, which may encourage the lush and diverse herbaceous flora. Large, robust colonies of Adiantum pedatum, Actaea racemosa, and Polystichum acrostichoides are characteristic of the herb layer.
The following plants from this plot were noticeably damaged by herbivory: Lindera benzoin, Eurybia divaricata, Carex sp., Circaea canadensis ssp. canadensis, Geranium maculatum, and Rhododendron periclymenoides.