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
35
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
7
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
70
%
Field Cover
40
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot location: ravine on SE side of the Willis River, 1.1 km NNW of jct. Rt. 623 and Rock Quarry Forest Road.
The vegetation sampled here represents a small patch of rich forest embedded within a much larger stand of more floristically limited hardwood forest. On this lower-slope habitat, species-richness is somewhat higher and a greater variety of mesophytic and nutrient-demanding species occur, including Carya cordiformis, Fraxinus americana, Asimina triloba, Cercis canadensis, and Ulmus rubra. The stand is dominated by very tall Quercus alba, Q. rubra, and Carya alba, but the largest diameter tree in the plot is an extraordinary Ulmus alata 56 cm DBH and about 30 m tall. Fagus grandifolia is the leading potential canopy species in the understory, where small Liriodendron, Fraxinus, and Liquidambar styraciflua are occasional gap occupiers.