Name:
Salix boothii - Salix geyeriana Wet Shrubland
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This shrubland association is currently only described from central and eastern Oregon but may also occur in Colorado. Additional global information will be added as it becomes available. It occurs at moderate to high elevations and is abundant in the southern East Cascades ecoregion (especially on Fremont National Forest). It is also common in the Blue Mountains ecoregion and was probably more common 200 years ago but is largely degraded to <i>Poa pratensis</i> communities by overgrazing and erosion. Valleys are moderate to wide, low-gradient and flat-shaped with gentle sideslopes. The association is common on two landforms: (1) low-gradient basins in the headwaters of drainages and (2) narrow, low- to moderate-gradient floodplains in the upper elevational reaches of streams. It also occurs occasionally in springs. Soils are slightly drier than a <i>Carex aquatilis</i> association. It thrives on the deep, fine-textured soils that build up behind beaver dams. Surface textures are silt loam, organic-rich silt or fine sandy to clay loams. Soils are Endoaquolls and Endoaquents. Available water-holding capacity is moderate to high. The soil surface is flooded in May and June and can lower to 2 m of the soil surface by September but generally remains within 50-75 cm of the soil surface throughout the year. The willows in this association can withstand de-oxygenated conditions in their rooting zones, but prolonged flooding of the root crowns can kill them. Rosgen stream reach types associated with sites sampled are low-gradient, highly sinuous C4, C5, E4, E5, and E6 and in degraded areas, F6. <i>Salix boothii, Salix geyeriana</i>, and <i>Salix lemmonii</i> (and/or occasionally <i>Betula nana</i>), either singly or in combination, dominate the shrub overstory, averaging 3.4 m in height (ranging from 0.9-13.5 m). <i>Ribes inerme, Salix drummondiana</i>, or <i>Alnus incana</i> are occasionally present in the stand. When present, the scattered shrub understory is dominated by various <i>Ribes</i> species averaging 1 m in height. <i>Carex aquatilis</i> is the dominant graminoid, generally excluding extensive cover by forbs. Other graminoids include <i>Calamagrostis canadensis, Deschampsia cespitosa, Phleum alpinum, Poa pratensis, Carex utriculata</i>, and <i>Juncus arcticus ssp. littoralis</i>. The rich forb component includes mesic species such as <i>Polemonium occidentale, Geum macrophyllum, Sidalcea oregana, Epilobium ciliatum, Polygonum bistortoides</i>, and <i>Pedicularis groenlandica</i>. The herbaceous layer averages 47 cm in height, ranging from 31-91 cm. Herbaceous biomass averages 1810 lbs/acre, ranging from 938-3223 lbs/acre.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:30093-{DA200955-6199-4BE0-8459-950651F303E8}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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