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
200
m²
Plot Quality Fields:
Plot Validation Level
(2) classification plot: sufficient for inclusion in a classification revision
Overall Plot Vegetation Fields:
Tree Height
18
m
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot location: Lone Star Lakes City Park. Slope bordering N side of Chuckatuck Creek, ca. 200 meters NE of main road through Park.
This plot represents a tiny fragment of what may be natural vegetation occurring on a highly calcareous slope along Chuckatuck Creek. Immediately west of the plot is a large, inundated borrow pit, one of many remnants of an extensive marl mining operation at this site. Hard, cemented shell marl is exposed in numerous areas of the Park and is responsible for the exceptional chemistry (pH = 7.1, Ca = 4594ppm) of soil samples collected here. The vegetation is a dry Acer barbatum- Juniperus virginiana; Quercus muhlenbergii, present in other places in the park, is inexplicably absent here. The plot boundaries were estimated due to extreme time pressure to complete the sampling before the Park closed.