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
34
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
2
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
12
%
Field Cover
80
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
This plot captures a deciduous forest on an low floodplain terrace near the main river channel of the Nottoway. The floodplain has numerous depression that hold water for extended periods, but the site was dry at the date of this survey. Large individuals (> 80 cm DBH) of Carya aquatica, Taxodium distichum and Quercus lyrata co-dominate the overstory of this sample, with smaller individuals of Fraxinus pennsylvanica and Ulmus americana also present. The shrub layer is very open, with Ilex decidua the most important species. The herb layer is characterized by dense cover by a diverse assemblage of hydrophytic sedges, and grasses, and forbs, of which Boehmeria cylindrica is the most abundant in the vicinity of the plot. The rare sedge Carex crus-corvi is fairly common in the stand. According to stand age data developed by the former owner, International Paper, this stand was last logged around 1890.
