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
33
m
Shrub Height
5
m
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
70
%
Shrub Cover
75
%
Field Cover
40
%
Nonvascular Cover
50
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot was positioned in a mesic, heavily wooded boulder field on the lower slope of a ravine just above the Potomac River floodplain. The forest here has relatively large overstory trees of Acer saccharum, Tilia americana, and Fraxinus americana, and a very dense shrub layer of Asimina triloba and Staphylea trifolia. Several canopy gaps are present from downfalls and two dead trees in the plot. The abundant, blocky rock cover limits herbaceous diversity. The herbaceous flora, however, contains a number of spring ephemerals and reflects the fertility of the sparse, interstitial soils.
No profile development; soils are strictly interstitial and only locally developed in the larger grottoes between boulders. A typical profile:
0-2 cm: litter
2-3 cm: humus
3+ cm: dark brown loam
Disturbance Data:
Disturbance Type
Disturbance Intensity
Disturbance Comment
unknown
Alliaria petiolata is a serious invasive in and around plot. Snags of Betula lenta and Acer saccharum present in plot.