Name:
A.248
Reference:
EcoArt 2002
Description:
This alliance includes xeric oak forests strongly dominated by ~Quercus prinus$ or ~Quercus prinus$ with admixtures of ~Quercus coccinea$ and/or ~Quercus velutina$, occurring in the southern and central Appalachians, Ridge and Valley, Cumberland Plateau, Piedmont, Interior Low Plateau, and possibly in the northern Appalachians. In the Piedmont and Ridge and Valley, and in areas transitional to these provinces, ~Quercus stellata$ and ~Quercus marilandica$ may be canopy associates. Other canopy/subcanopy associates include ~Acer rubrum, Amelanchier arborea, Carya alba, Carya glabra, Cornus florida, Hamamelis virginiana, Magnolia fraseri, Nyssa sylvatica, Oxydendrum arboreum, Pinus rigida, Pinus strobus, Quercus alba, Quercus rubra, Robinia pseudoacacia$, and ~Sassafras albidum$. In the Appalachians, a dense ericaceous shrub layer is characteristic, with species such as ~Gaylussacia baccata, Gaylussacia ursina, Kalmia latifolia, Leucothoe recurva, Rhododendron maximum, Vaccinium pallidum$, and ~Vaccinium stamineum$. In the upper Piedmont ~Kalmia latifolia, Vaccinium arboreum$, and ~Vaccinium pallidum$ are common. In the montane distribution of this alliance, forests of this alliance have replaced forests formerly dominated or codominated by ~Castanea dentata$, and chestnut sprouts are common in the understory. Other shrub species found in forests of this alliance include ~Chionanthus virginicus, Diospyros virginiana, Robinia hispida, Sassafras albidum, Styrax grandifolius, Symplocos tinctoria, Viburnum acerifolium, Viburnum prunifolium$, and ~Viburnum rufidulum$. Herbaceous cover is typically sparse in these dry, rocky forests and species vary with geographic location. Some typical herbaceous species include ~Antennaria plantaginifolia, Aureolaria laevigata, Chamaelirium luteum, Chimaphila maculata, Danthonia spicata, Dichanthelium commutatum, Dichanthelium dichotomum, Dioscorea quaternata, Epigaea repens, Galax urceolata, Galium latifolium, Gaultheria procumbens, Goodyera pubescens, Hieracium venosum, Lysimachia quadrifolia, Medeola virginiana, Monotropa uniflora, Potentilla canadensis, Pteridium aquilinum, Stenanthium gramineum, Uvularia puberula$, and ~Uvularia sessilifolia$. These forests occur on convex, upper slopes and ridgetops, south-facing slopes, over thin, rocky, infertile soils in the Appalachians, typically below 3500 feet (1066 m), where windthrow and ice damage are common natural disturbances. In the Piedmont these forests occur on low mountains and hills, on rocky, well-drained, acidic soils, sometimes associated with outcrops of quartzite, or other resistant rock.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.1758.A248
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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