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
34
m
Shrub Height
5
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
20
%
Field Cover
70
%
Nonvascular Cover
4
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot is representative of the most mature portion of an extensive wet "flatwoods" on the very broad floodplain (0.8 km on either side of the channel) of the Chickahominy River. Hydrology is mixed. The site experiences occasional sheet flow, rare catastrophic flooding, and is primarily saturated by shallow groundwater. The forest overstory contains large Acer rubrum and Liquidambar styraciflua, with smaller oaks in the understory, suggesting future successional advance. Saururus cernuus, Woodwardia areolata, and several Carex spp. are patch-dominant in the herb layer. Most of the surrounding stand is younger and more even-aged.