Name:
Acer rubrum var. trilobum - Nyssa sylvatica / Osmunda cinnamomea - Carex intumescens / Sphagnum lescurii Seep Forest
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
These forested acidic seeps occur in the Cumberland Plateau, the Ridge and Valley, areas of the western portions of the Southern Blue Ridge at lower elevations, as well as in the Appalachian Plateaus of Kentucky (Cliff section), and western Kentucky at the edge of the Shawnee Hills (Dripping Springs Escarpment). These forests are found primarily in streamhead swales on broad ridges on sandy, saturated soils derived from shales and sandstones. This community develops where a perched water table is present, as opposed to seepage from the base of a slope [for vegetation related to this latter condition, see ~<i>Acer rubrum var. trilobum - Nyssa sylvatica / Rhododendron canescens - Viburnum nudum var. nudum / Woodwardia areolata</i> Seep Forest (CEGL004425)$$]. Canopy coverage can be moderately dense to quite open. Canopy composition is highly variable, but <i>Acer rubrum var. trilobum, Nyssa sylvatica, Liriodendron tulipifera</i>, and <i>Liquidambar styraciflua</i> are common. Subcanopy trees can include <i>Ilex opaca var. opaca, Carpinus caroliniana</i>, and (within range) <i>Magnolia macrophylla</i>. Tall shrubs are scattered and may be locally dominant. Typical shrubs include <i>Ilex verticillata, Alnus serrulata, Rhododendron maximum, Aronia melanocarpa, Vaccinium simulatum, Viburnum nudum var. nudum</i>, and <i>Cornus foemina</i>. In examples from the Southern Blue Ridge, <i>Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides</i> will replace <i>Viburnum nudum var. nudum</i> in this type. Woody vines can be common and include <i>Toxicodendron radicans</i> and (especially towards the southern part of the association's distribution), <i>Decumaria barbara</i> and <i>Bignonia capreolata</i>. Typical herbaceous species include <i>Osmunda cinnamomea, Osmunda regalis var. spectabilis, Chasmanthium laxum, Thelypteris noveboracensis, Woodwardia areolata, Oxypolis rigidior, Carex intumescens, Carex debilis, Carex crinita, Medeola virginiana, Lobelia cardinalis, Juncus effusus var. pylaei, Scirpus polyphyllus, Rubus hispidus, Solidago patula var. patula, Athyrium filix-femina ssp. asplenioides</i>, and <i>Viola x primulifolia</i>. <i>Platanthera integrilabia</i> and <i>Platanthera clavellata</i> are also known from these forested seeps but are more typical in more open woodland seeps. Patches of <i>Sphagnum</i> spp. are common and <i>Sphagnum lescurii</i> is typical. In the Daniel Boone National Forest (Kentucky), some stands can contain <i>Tsuga canadensis</i> and be transitional to ~<i>Tsuga canadensis - Acer rubrum - (Nyssa sylvatica) / Rhododendron maximum / Sphagnum</i> spp. Seep Forest (CEGL007565)$$.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:35671-{063BD0A4-14A9-46FC-A972-726DC875D726}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
13
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