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
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(2) classification plot: sufficient for inclusion in a classification revision
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Tree Cover
70
%
Shrub Cover
18
%
Field Cover
50
%
Nonvascular Cover
1
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A mixed oak-heath old growth forest on deep, mesic, strongly acid soil on a sub-level bench with a small spring and stream. Rather species rich for an oligotrophic forest. Among the possible reasons, the absence of Rhododendron maximum and Tsuga canadensis, which often dominate mesic but nutrient-poor sites in the mountains and shade out the herb and shrub layers. Their absence may be related to the relative higher frequency of fire on this mountainside bench compared to that of a typical stream ravine, where moist, acid conditions and Tsuga and Rhododendron are more commonly found in the mountains. Also there is a range of microelevations with respect to the evidently shallow water table within the plot.
Plot located ca. 1.8 mi east of Iron Hill Springs, ca. 850 ft northwest of FR 350, just west of small spring-fed stream on mountainside bench, and ca. 100 ft upstream from where stream breaches bench edge.
2 huge chestnut bolls lying in plot vicinity. Fire scars on old tulip, charred bark on Robinia nearby. Deer browse on some forbs, especially Lysimachia quadrifolia.
