Name:
Carex stricta - Carex vesicaria Seasonally Flooded Herbaceous Vegetation
Reference:
Eastern Ecology Working Group of...
Description:
These tussock sedge meadows are distributed across the northeastern United States. They occur in seasonally flooded basins or on stream or lake margins. The substrate is peat or muck of variable depth overlying mineral soil. Standing water may be present only at the beginning of, or through much of, the growing season depending on the site and the year's precipitation; even when the water drops, the soils remain saturated. Microtopography is characterized by large tussocks, particularly when the hydroperiod is extended. The physiognomy is strongly herbaceous, or in some cases herbs mixed with shrubs (up to 25% shrub cover); trees are absent. Bryophyte cover is usually sparse, but may occasionally reach over 50%. Carex stricta, in its tussock form, is the usual dominant. Carex vesicaria, Carex utriculata, and Calamagrostis canadensis may also be locally abundant. Associated graminoids include Carex canescens, Carex comosa, Carex scoparia, Carex stipata, Carex vulpinoidea, Glyceria canadensis, Dulichium arundinaceum, Leersia oryzoides, and Scirpus cyperinus; forbs and ferns include Asclepias incarnata, Thelypteris palustris, Eupatorium maculatum, Campanula aparinoides, Osmunda regalis, Comarum palustre (= Potentilla palustris), Lysimachia terrestris, Angelica atropurpurea, Eupatorium perfoliatum, Lycopus americanus, Galium obtusum, and others. Lythrum salicaria may be invasive in some settings. Shrub associates vary with geography. In the northern part of the range, Alnus incana, Myrica gale, Ilex verticillata, Chamaedaphne calyculata, and Spiraea alba are often present. Bryophytes, where present, include Sphagnum magellanicum, Sphagnum girgensohnii, Sphagnum palustre, Drepanocladus aduncus, and others. This association is differentiated from other wet meadows by the strong dominance of Carex stricta.
Accession Code:
VB.CC.27854.CAREXSTRICTACAR
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
|
