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A.1488 | EcoArt 2002
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Name: A.1488 Reference: EcoArt 2002 Description: This alliance is found on the eastern side of the Continental Divide in the foothills of the Colorado Front Range. Topographic features include hogbacks, ridges, mesas and slopes. Slopes vary from gentle to somewhat steep, and aspects are often easterly, except at the higher elevations where they are southerly. Stands occupy the most xeric of the wooded sites in the eastern Front Range, a zone between grass- and shrub-dominated vegetation at lower elevations and more densely forested in more mesic and higher elevation areas. Soils are poorly developed, well-drained, very rocky and/or gravelly, loam or sandy loam in texture, and with much exposed surface rock. Vegetation included in this alliance is characterized by ~Pinus ponderosa$, which forms an open tree layer (10-30% cover). The understory is composed of broad-leaved deciduous shrubs, succulents, suffrutescents and graminoids. ~Cercocarpus montanus$ dominates the shrub layer, with ~Rhus trilobata$ always present in lower abundance. Succulent species, such as ~Opuntia polyacantha, Echinocereus viridiflorus$, and ~Yucca glauca$, and suffrutescent species, such as ~Artemisia frigida, Artemisia ludoviciana$, and ~Eriogonum umbellatum$, are also consistently present. The moderately dense graminoid layer is dominated by perennial bunch grasses. ~Andropogon gerardii$ is always present to codominant. Other important species include ~Elymus albicans (= Elymus lanceolatus ssp. albicans), Schizachyrium scoparium, Hesperostipa comata (= Stipa comata), Bouteloua hirsuta$, and ~Bouteloua curtipendula$. Diagnostic of this alliance is the open tree canopy of ~Pinus ponderosa$ with a moderately dense graminoid layer dominated by medium-tall to tall bunch grasses.  Accession Code: VB.CC.1260.A1488 Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 26-Nov-1997 to: 17-Mar-2005
	status: accepted Community's Parent: V.A.6.N.b This Community's Level: Alliance This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   Scientific: PINUS PONDEROSA WOODED TALL HERBACEOUS ALLIANCE   Code: A.1488   Common: Ponderosa Pine Wooded Tall Herbaceous Alliance (convergence) and Synonyms: (undetermined) Pinus ponderosa Wooded Tall Herbaceous Alliance