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
32
m
Shrub Height
5
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
95
%
Shrub Cover
30
%
Field Cover
6
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Dryish white oak/ hickory forest with many mature trees and a sparse but moderately diverse herbaceous flora. The plot, located on a convex spur crest, has been heavily impacted by white-tailed deer herbivory but is nevertheless compositionally representative of a "classic" oak-hickory forest; outside the plot, much of the stand understory has been invaded by Acer rubrum, Fagus grandifolia, and other mesophytic trees, presumably because of fire exclusion or reduction. The invasive exotic grass Microstegium vimineum, which is abundant in mesic ravines flanking the site, spread significantly upslope during the wet summers of 2003-2004.