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
30
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
80
%
Shrub Cover
25
%
Field Cover
45
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
The plot is located in a dry-mesic hardwood forest that was heavily cut over about 20 years ago. Most adjacent areas now support even-age stands dominated by Liriodendron tulipifera. In the area of the plot, several older oaks, hickories, and white ash characteristic of the previous stand were left, probably because of poor growth form. Still, several small gaps have allowed more than a dozen sapling and pole-sized Liriodendron to become established. The herb layer is quite diverse and contains several species characteristic of basic soils. Overall, the vegetation is more consistent with a geologic substrate of amphibolite, which is mapped just to the north, rather than the mapped substrate of biotite gneiss.
