Name:
Picea rubens - (Tsuga canadensis) / Rhododendron maximum Forest
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This association includes moist slope forests of the Central and Southern Appalachians. <i>Abies fraseri</i> is a minor component or entirely absent. These communities can occur on high-elevation boulderfields, ridges and steep slopes, as well as sheltered lower slopes above 945 m (3100 feet). This association occurs in the lower elevations of the range of <i>Picea rubens</i>, primarily on protected landforms such as steep to gentle slopes but also on ridges at least in parts of its range. In the Southern and Central Appalachians these are closed-canopy conifer forests dominated by <i>Picea rubens</i>, with associates <i>Tsuga canadensis, Acer pensylvanicum, Amelanchier</i> spp., <i>Betula alleghaniensis</i>, and <i>Sorbus americana</i>. This concept includes protected slope forests in the Great Smoky Mountains, as well as in West Virginia in which <i>Tsuga canadensis</i> is codominant. The shrub layer is dominated by <i>Rhododendron maximum</i>, with associates of <i>Ilex montana, Kalmia latifolia, Viburnum lantanoides</i>, and <i>Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides</i>. In some examples, the shrub layer can include a mixture of <i>Rhododendron catawbiense</i> and <i>Rhododendron maximum</i>. Other minor shrub components can include <i>Vaccinium simulatum, Vaccinium erythrocarpum</i>, and <i>Aronia melanocarpa</i>. Herbaceous cover is typically sparse, but where the shrub stratum is more open, a moderate herb stratum may be developed. This can include <i>Clintonia borealis, Dryopteris campyloptera, Huperzia lucidula, Lycopodium</i> spp., <i>Medeola virginiana, Mitchella repens, Oxalis montana</i>, and <i>Rugelia nudicaulis</i> (in the Great Smoky Mountains).
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:34800-{76037ED7-DB2E-47EE-8B9E-79AB3653D268}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
22
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