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
32
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
90
%
Shrub Cover
45
%
Field Cover
5
%
Nonvascular Cover
5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot was placed in a magnificient, mature, old-age hemlock stand occupying the gentle bottom of Brier Cove on Clinch Mountain. Although adelgids are present, the hemlock trees still have most of their foliage and range from 50 to 80 cm DBH. Canopy-class white oak and sweet birch are rooted outside the plot but contribute overhanging cover. Small trees of Betula alleghaniensis are confined to the banks of a small stream that borders the west side of the plot. The density of Rhododendron maximum here is less than in many other parts of this cove, and the stems of these shrubs have been extensively bent to the ground, perhaps by ice and snow.
