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
31
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
75
%
Field Cover
0.5
%
Nonvascular Cover
1
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A dense, floristically depauperate acidic cove forest lying downslope of the Appalachian Trail along a tributary of Nobusiness Creek. The stand lies above the upper elevation limits of Liriodendron tulipifera but is otherwise similar to forests of lower-elevaiton coves in the southwestern Virginia Ridge and Valley. The overstory contains a mixture of medium-sized Betula lenta, Acer rubrum, Quercus rubra, Nyssa sylvatica, and some Quercus montana. Old Rhododendron maximum, with > 2500 stems / hectare and frequently exceeding 6 m tall, forms a very dense, continuous shrub layer. The combination of dense evergreen shade and extremely rocky, superficial organic soil greatly constrains the establishment of herbaceous plants and contributes to extremely low species richness (9 taxa per 400 sq. m.).
