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Thuja plicata - Abies grandis / Polystichum munitum Forest | Western Ecology Working Group of...
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Name: Thuja plicata - Abies grandis / Polystichum munitum Forest Reference: Western Ecology Working Group of... Description: This forest association occurs primarily in the Puget Sound Basin in northwestern Washington and adjacent British Columbia. Stands are relatively small in area and are restricted to very specific environments in the rainshadow of the Olympic Mountains and Vancouver Island. The climate is drier than surrounding coastal mountain areas, with average annual precipitation ranging from as low as 46 cm in the San Juan Islands to 90 cm in the Puget Lowlands, with a pronounced summer dry season. Valleys where these forests are found are protected from the dry summer winds and have relatively low summer temperatures. Soils are loamy sands to sandy loams, with weakly developed profiles, and soil moisture is high most of the year. These tall conifer forests are dominated by <i>Thuja plicata</i> and <i>Abies grandis</i>. <i>Tsuga heterophylla</i> is also common, occurring in most stands, but in less abundance and does not regenerate. Tree regeneration is relatively sparse, with the dominant trees each averaging 64 saplings and seedlings per hectare. Stands that have been disturbed by logging often have an abundant tree subcanopy and shrubby layer of the seral, broad-leaved deciduous trees <i>Acer macrophyllum</i> and <i>Alnus rubra</i>. These deciduous species are not present in undisturbed stands. The understory is strongly dominated by the perennial fern <i>Polystichum munitum</i>, which averages 43% cover and often the fronds have a 2-m spread. Scattered individuals of several shrub species also occur, such as <i>Symphoricarpos albus</i> and <i>Vaccinium parvifolium</i>, but none have greater than 2% cover. Mosses are abundant on logs and average 15% cover. Diagnostic of this forest association is the dominance of <i>Thuja plicata</i> and <i>Abies grandis</i> in the tree canopy and <i>Polystichum munitum</i> in the understory.  Accession Code: VB.CC.32314.CEGL000468 Plot-observations of this Community Concept: 0
	Party Perspective according to: NatureServe (organization) Perspective from: 17-Nov-2014 to: 01-May-2019
	status: accepted This Community's Level: association This Community's Children: [none]		Names:   UID: ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.689671 NatureServe Explorer   Translated: Western Red-cedar - Grand Fir / Western Swordfern Forest   Scientific: Thuja plicata - Abies grandis / Polystichum munitum Forest   Code: CEGL000468