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
20
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
70
%
Shrub Cover
60
%
Field Cover
50
%
Nonvascular Cover
10
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot is one of three (see also JWNF038 and JWNF039) located in an extensive montane oak-hickory stand on the upper SE flank of Walker Mountain, both NE and SW of Rt. 738, at 3000 to 3700 ft elevation. Underlying bedrock is Silurian sandstone and perhaps some Juniata siltstone along the crest. Soils are dark sandy and silty acidic loams with moderate calcium content. The plots are within an area that Jesse Overcash (USFS) mapped as a stand with old-growth characteristics. Field investigation indicated that the larger-diameter, dominant oaks show evidence of having been open grown for parts of their life. These are associated with a younger cohort of oaks and hickories that evidently regenerated following the end of historical disturbances. The most likely explanation for this stand structure is that the site was used as summer range for livestock, a common practice in the region during the 19th and early 20th centuries. This plot is representative of intermediate site moisture conditions and compositional variation in the stand, containing species characteristic of both the more mesic and lush portions and the drier, graminoid-dominant portions. This particular site has no large oaks, and is generally dominated by hickories. Overall species richness is very high (92 taxa / 400 sq. m.).
