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
25
m
Tree Cover
70
%
Shrub Cover
25
%
Field Cover
20
%
Nonvascular Cover
7
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot documents a medium-age mixed hardwood stand on a lower, SW-facing slope adjacent to Mill Creek. Despite the warm aspect, this site is quite sheltered and mesic, with very nutrient-rich colluvial soils weathered from underlying dolomitic limestone. There are no clear canopy dominants; Acer saccharum, Acer nigrum, Quercus muhlenbergii, Carya cordiformis are all common, with Fraxinus americana, Liriodendron tulipifera, Tilia americana var. heterophylla, and Ulmus rubra also present. The shrub layer is open, and herbs are somewhat sparse but diverse. This stand is characteristic of dry-mesic forests occurring throughout the Reeds Valley / Clinch River knobs area.