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
8
m
Tree Cover
75
%
Shrub Cover
30
%
Field Cover
65
%
Nonvascular Cover
40
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
An isolated tract of George Washington National Forest land occupies the steep, NW flank of Black Oak Ridge subtending Stuarts Run. The ridge is underlain by Helderberg limestone, outcrops and debris of which are numerous in the area. Much of the slope supports an extensive stand of young to medium-aged, second-growth dry-mesophytic forest of Acer saccharum, Quercus spp., Carya spp., and Liriodendron tulipifera. However, on the lowest part of the slope, "richer" vegetation has developed in the deep, bouldery, highly calcareous colluvium bordering the Stuart Run floodplain. This plot captures this type of site and vegetation, which contains Carya cordiformis, Tilia americana, Juglans nigra, and Ulmus rubra, in addition to most of the trees found upslope. Here, Carpinus carolinana, Lindera benzoin, and locally (outside plot) Staphylea trifolia are common shrubs. Except where boulders and outcrops prevail, the herb layer is lush and patch-dominated by nutrient-demanding colonial forbs such as Caulophyllum thalictroides and Laportea canadensis.