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
40
m
Shrub Height
6
m
Field Height
1
m
Tree Cover
90
%
Shrub Cover
50
%
Field Cover
90
%
Nonvascular Cover
0.5
%
Misc Fields:
Observation Narrative
A secondary forest strongly dominated by even-aged Liriodendron tulipifera (40-50 cm DBH) but with a mixed understory of uneven-aged Carya cordiformis, Aesculus flava, Acer saccharum, and Fraxinus americana. Liriodendron canopy dominants regenerated from stump sprouts, suggesting at least two cycles of logging within the past 100 years or so. Barring additional disturbances, the long-term successional trajectory will be toward a more mixed stand in which Aesculus flava and Acer saccharum are prevalent. True shrubs are very sparse. The herb layer is composed of a profusion of nutrient-demanding, patch-dominant forbs, including Laportea canadensis, Osmorhiza claytonii, Hydrophyllum canadense, Hydrophyllum macrophyllum, and Phacelia bipinnatifida. This vegetation covers a fairly extensive area on the lower slopes along Big Tumbling Creek, where soils high in calcium prevail.