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
24
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
85
%
Shrub Cover
20
%
Field Cover
80
%
Nonvascular Cover
29
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
This plot is located on a rocky, upper slope of a calcareous ridge that supports a dry, species-rich forest of oaks, sugar maple, and diverse herbs. Based on the very high content of magnesium, as well as of calcium, in soil samples collected from the site, the underlying bedrock is presumed to be dolomite. The mixed overstory is composed of Quercus alba, Q. rubra, and Q. muhlenbergii, while Acer saccharum overwhelmingly dominates the understory, accounting for almost half the total density of stems (> 2.5 cm DDB) in the plot. The shrub layer is rather sparse, while the herb layer is low and fairly dense, featuring patch-dominance by Packera obovata, Erigeron pulchellus, Hepatica acutiloba, and Thalictrum dioicum. Many additional forbs and graminoids occur at low cover. The stand is fairly typical of dry calcareous forests on carbonate substrates of the Virginia Ridge and Valley province. Its full extent at this site was not determined but it appears to extend along the ridgecrest to the south. On both the east and west slopes below the plot, the dry forest vegetation grades quickly to rich, mixed mesophytic forest (see plot GILE006).