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:
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
50
%
Shrub Cover
15
%
Field Cover
70
%
Nonvascular Cover
1
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A gentle, moderately rich slope once dominated by massive virgin Castanea dentata, whose fallen boles now litter the forest floor. Scattered large Quercus alba, Acer rubrum and Carya spp., once associated with the stately Castanea, remain as legacies of the original stand, while a younger generation of mixed hardwoods has moved in to fill the canopy gaps. Soils are evidently enriched somewhat on this concave upper slope. The herbaceous layer is relatively diverse.
Plot located on gentle slope at head of a draw below saddle on Shenandoah Mountain, west of Ramseys Draft Left Prong and ca. 80 m east of Shenandoah Mountain Trail.