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
4
m
Field Height
6
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
30
%
Field Cover
70
%
Nonvascular Cover
3
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
This plot can be considered a replacement for ROCB010, which was started by Phil Coulling but never completed. It captures a relatively diverse section of the rich slope forest bordering the Maury River floodplain on the campuses of Washington & Lee University and the Virginia Military Institute. The exotics Alliaria petiolata and Veronica hederifolia are problematic only at the downslope edge of the plot where they have moderately high cover. Native spring ephemerals and other nutrient-demanding herbs dominate overall under a mixed canopy of ~100-year old Liriodendron, Carya cordiformis, Acer nigrum, Acer saccharum, Tilia americana var. americana, and Quercus muehlenbergii. Several large Quercus rubra occur upslope and outside the plot. The open shrub layer is dominated by Lindera benzoin and tree saplings. Dicentra cucullaria, Caulophyllum thalictroides, and Erythronium americanum have the highest vernal cover.