Name:
Tsuga canadensis - Acer rubrum Saturated Forest Alliance
Reference:
Southeastern Ecology Working Gro...
Description:
This alliance includes palustrine forests, often dominated by Tsuga canadensis and Acer rubrum, with closed to open canopies and an open to dense shrub layer, interspersed with small Sphagnum - herb-dominated depressions. Canopies are composed of various mixtures of evergreen and deciduous species, with canopy dominants varying with elevation. Occurrences at lower elevations tend to be dominated by Acer rubrum, Liriodendron tulipifera, and/or Nyssa sylvatica, while examples at higher elevations are usually dominated by Tsuga canadensis and Betula alleghaniensis. The dominant shrubs are usually Rhododendron maximum, Kalmia latifolia, and Leucothoe fontanesiana, but other shrubs include Salix nigra, Alnus serrulata, Ilex montana, Cornus amomum, Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides, and Toxicodendron vernix. Herbs in Sphagnum - herb-dominated openings include Solidago patula var. patula, Symphyotrichum puniceum (= Aster puniceus), Dalibarda repens, Osmunda cinnamomea, Carex folliculata, Carex gynandra, Carex scabrata, Carex leptalea, Carex stricta, Sarracenia purpurea, Sagittaria latifolia (= Sagittaria latifolia var. pubescens), and Leersia virginica. Herbs in the forested areas include Glyceria melicaria, Lycopodium obscurum, Onoclea sensibilis, Maianthemum canadense, Thelypteris noveboracensis, and Osmunda regalis var. spectabilis. Forests in this alliance are typically at elevations below 1200 m (4000 feet), in poorly drained bottomlands, generally with visible microtopography of ridges and sloughs or depressions. They often occur near streams and are undoubtedly occasionally flooded. These forests are found in the northeastern U.S. and throughout the Southern Blue Ridge, in the Cumberland Mountains and Cumberland Plateau, and in the central Appalachians.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.19793.TSUGACANADENSIS
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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