Name:
Quercus (phellos, michauxii) / Ilex opaca / Clethra alnifolia / Woodwardia areolata Wet Forest
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This association occurs in the central and northern Virginia Coastal Plain and Maryland Coastal Plain on extensive, flat terraces and very wide, ancient floodplains that are no longer subject to alluvial processes. Its hydrology is seasonally to nearly permanently saturated, with occasional ponding or groundwater sheetflows, and is maintained by a high water table rather than riverine or estuarine flooding. The overstory of relatively undisturbed examples contain variable mixtures of hydrophytic oaks, most commonly <i>Quercus phellos, Quercus pagoda</i>, and <i>Quercus michauxii</i>. Associated canopy species varying from site to site can include <i>Quercus alba, Quercus palustris, Quercus lyrata, Liquidambar styraciflua, Acer rubrum, Pinus taeda, Nyssa sylvatica</i>, and <i>Fraxinus pennsylvanica</i>. The subcanopy layers are usually dominated by <i>Ilex opaca var. opaca</i> and also contain <i>Magnolia virginiana</i> and recruitment of the overstory trees. The shrub layer varies from open to dense. It most characteristically contains <i>Clethra alnifolia, Eubotrys racemosa, Ilex verticillata, Vaccinium corymbosum, Vaccinium fuscatum, Vaccinium formosum, Viburnum dentatum, Rhododendron viscosum</i>, and <i>Viburnum nudum var. nudum</i>. The herb layer is also highly variable. Some stands have a rather sparse herbaceous flora, with scattered colonies and individuals of <i>Woodwardia areolata, Osmunda cinnamomea, Osmunda regalis var. spectabilis, Woodwardia virginica, Saururus cernuus</i>, and various sedges. Others have a relatively dense graminoid-dominated herb layer with variable patch-dominance by <i>Chasmanthium laxum, Carex debilis var. debilis, Carex intumescens, Carex seorsa, Carex lonchocarpa</i>, and more rarely, <i>Carex bullata</i> or <i>Carex striata var. brevis</i>. Many stands of this association have been degraded by cutting or ditching, and extensive areas of suitable habitat have been lost to agriculture, hydrologic alterations, and conversion of hardwood forests to silvicultural pine plantations.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:33427-{C90C4C21-C429-47D6-93C0-575625DDF38A}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
42
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