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
31
m
Shrub Height
4
m
Field Height
5
m
Tree Cover
90
%
Shrub Cover
3
%
Field Cover
55
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
Plot was positioned in one of the most mature parts of an upland hardwood forest that extensively covers the Ragged Mountain Natural Area. Most other portions of this forest have higher concentrations of invasive exotics, along with overstory dominance or co-dominance by Liriodendron tulipifera, indicative of extensive past logging and clearing disturbances. Large Quercus rubra are prevalent in the overstory of the plot; large Q. montana and Q. alba are present in nearby parts of the stand. Shrubs and woody saplings are sparse to absent both within the plot and the adjacent parts of the stand, possibly as a result of past livestock grazing or other disturbances. The herb layer is well developed and consists largely of native species. However, the presence of shrub-sized Elaeagnus umbellata and several invasive exotic herbs at low cover does not bode well for the compositional integrity of the stand.