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
30
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
25
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
75
%
Field Cover
4
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A long narrow plot configuration was used to sample an alluvial flat between Rt 615 and Laurel Creek. The hydrology of this area is somewhat ambiguous; the site is probably best classified as an upland with small seasonally saturated inclusions. Several trees of Pinus rigida are present outside the plot, suggesting a history of fire. The vegetation is a typical acidic cove forest with a canopy co-dominated by several mesophytic species (Liriodendron tulipifera, Betula lenta, Acer rubrum, Magnolia acuminata, Nyssa sylvatica) and a dense shrub layer of Rhododendron maximum; it covers all of the flats and lower slopes along Laurel Creek in this area. Herbaceous plants occupy small openings in the rhododendron cover.
