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
6
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
90
%
Shrub Cover
55
%
Field Cover
80
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Vegetation in this plot is representative of an area in the back part the broad, Dragon Swamp bottomland that is relatively well drained. Whereas most of the bottomland supports seasonally flooded baldcypress - mixed hardwood stands and shrubby beaver-impounded wetlands, this site is probably only shallowly flooded in discrete depressions during the winter and early spring. The forest is notable for the frequency of large oaks (Quercus michauxii and Q. lyrata) occurring in association with some baldcypress, red maple, green ash, and sweetgum. Baldcypress knees are abundant but are very short, < 0.5 m tall. A large Quercus lyrata overhangs and contributes significant cover to the plot. Carex bromoides ssp. bromoides, a sedge most often found in nutrient-rich soils, is strongly patch-dominant throughout this better-drained bottomland area.
0-2 cm: leaf litter
2-13 cm: dark gray silty clay with some sand
13+ cm: medium gray sand with some clay
Disturbance Data:
Disturbance Type
Disturbance Intensity
Disturbance Comment
unknown
Closer to the main Dragon Swamp channel, the bottomland is open from extensive beaver activity, but the back porttion where the plot is located is undisturbed. A few snags and fallen trees are present in the plot. Very low cover of exotics.