Intensive 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
1000
m²
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(2) classification plot: sufficient for inclusion in a classification revision
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Tree Height
22
m
Tree Cover
60
%
Shrub Cover
20
%
Field Cover
70
%
Nonvascular Cover
2
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Although somewhat disturbed, this stand appears to represent the typical, rather pedestrian, post-logging vegetation near the ridgeline in the north-central part of Grassy Hill NAP. Notably or virtually absent are species characteristic of shallow, claypan, shrink-swell, or magnesium-rich soils, such as Quercus stellata, Q. marilandica, Piptochaetium avenaceum, and Scleria oligantha, as well as heliophytes such as Helianthus divaricatus which are more common beneath more open canopy. The chief exceptions are Parthenium integrifolium and Prunus alleghaniensis, which are ubiquitous on the preserve. Heath cover is low; the most abundant ground-layer taxa are Toxicodendron radicans, Dichanthelium boscii, and Rubus. Toxicodendron is especially abundant where sapling density is very low, such as the center of module 9. Several stumps and dead Cornus florida stems are present. The most disturbed portion of the plot is module 7, which contains dead Cornus, two canopy snags, a snapped Acer rubrum bole, and numerous downed branches. GPS file was lost, so plot location had to be determined imprecisely from topo map.
