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
90
%
Shrub Cover
30
%
Field Cover
70
%
Nonvascular Cover
15
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A higher elevation Quercus montana-, Quercus rubra-, Acer rubrum-, and formerly Castanea dentata-dominated old-growth forest on a very bouldery, stony, moderate northwest-facing slope. The boulders are cf. Tuscarora quartzitic sandstone. This plot is similar to GJNF304, but is likely more mesic, if not more fertile, because it is in a quasi-lower slope position (i.e., it is just above a bench), and there is definitely an accessible mineral soil here underneath a moderate litter and duff accumulation. Soil analysis results may not be strictly comparable between plots because the sample from plot GJNF304 was all organic and this plot's sample was mineral. Likely indicators of the more mesic conditions include the former abundance of Castanea dentata, which was even more important on the sublevel bench downslope, as well as other nearby less steep sites with mesic aspects with less rocky substrates; that Acer rubrum has conspicuously taken advantage of the gaps made by the Castanea die off; and the presence of Magnolia acuminata in the canopy. There is evidence of multiple fires, at least one before and at least one after the Castanea die-off.
Plot located ca. 2.0 mi southeast of Hematite, ca. 1000 ft northwest of overlook adjacent to FR 175 on crest of Peters Mountain. (See sketch on original plot form.)
