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
36
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
90
%
Shrub Cover
70
%
Field Cover
2
%
Nonvascular Cover
4
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Resample of 13-year old permanent plot. Corners are now monumented with rebar stakes painted light blue.
There has been very little change in this plot since 2001. Almost all the trees and shrubs measured in 2001 were still present, although a few low-cover herbaceous species have disappeared. The growth of woody plants has resulted in a modest increase in basal area and stem density, including that of the dominant shrub, Kalmia latifolia. As noted in the comments on the original sample, this stand is transitional between mixed hardwood forests of the valley floor and chestnut oak/heath forests of the ridge slope. The component of Fagus grandifolia, indicative of the mesophytic conditions, continues to increase in the understory and should, over time, wrest more of the overstory dominance from the oaks.
