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
21
m
Shrub Height
4
m
Field Height
6
m
Tree Cover
70
%
Shrub Cover
40
%
Field Cover
5
%
Nonvascular Cover
1
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
This plot documents an openly forested pond that is reported to have the longest hydroperiod of any pond at Piney Grove (B. Klontz, pers. comm.). The water marks on trees are at 30-40 cm above the ground. Moss and lichens are abundant on the tree trunks and on hummocks. The woodland is open and dominated by stunted, small-diameter Nyssa biflora with swollen bases. Thickets of shrubs with Smilax are scattered throughout the pond. Vaccinium spp. and other shrubs are rooted in old pine stumps, forming hummocks of vegetation. This wetland was logged over along with the adjacent pine forest within the past few decades.