Name:
Quercus prinus - Quercus rubra Forest Alliance
Reference:
Southeastern Ecology Working Gro...
Description:
This alliance includes dry-mesic oak forests, codominated by Quercus prinus and Quercus rubra, at moderate elevations in the Blue Ridge, Ridge and Valley, and High Alleghenies of Virginia, western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee, South Carolina, and Georgia. It also includes transitional oak - hickory forests of Lower New England and the Northern Piedmont. This alliance may possibly range into the upper Piedmont and into the eastern fringes of the Cumberland Mountains and Appalachian Plateau of Kentucky, but no associations have been defined for these regions. The majority of the forests in this alliance occur in areas previously dominated by Castanea dentata, and chestnut sprouts are common in the understory. The canopy of forests in this alliance tend to be dominated by Quercus rubra and/or Quercus prinus, although other mesic hardwood species can codominate or be present in the canopy and subcanopy. Typical tree associates include Liriodendron tulipifera, Acer rubrum, Hamamelis virginiana, Acer pensylvanicum, and Oxydendrum arboreum. In the Appalachian Mountains, shrub layers are often dense and dominated by ericaceous species, Rhododendron maximum (especially on northerly aspects), Rhododendron minus, Kalmia latifolia, Gaylussacia spp., and Vaccinium spp. Herbaceous coverage tends to be inversely proportional to the shrub coverage. Galax urceolata and Gaultheria procumbens are components in sparse herb strata. Other herbs typical of these forests include Solidago curtisii, Lysimachia quadrifolia, Thelypteris noveboracensis, Gentiana decora, Sanicula trifoliata, Prenanthes altissima, Dichanthelium spp. (Dichanthelium boscii, Dichanthelium commutatum, Dichanthelium dichotomum), Carex pensylvanica, Polystichum acrostichoides, Chimaphila maculata, Desmodium nudiflorum, Galium latifolium, Houstonia purpurea, and Maianthemum racemosum ssp. racemosum. In montane landscapes, these forest occur on intermediate positions of elevation and aspect, on protected, often rocky slopes. Forests in this alliance are also found on sandstone boulderfields and outcrops in Virginia's Ridge and Valley.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.20467.QUERCUSPRINUSQU
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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