Name:
Quercus shumardii - Carya myristiciformis - (Quercus muehlenbergii) / Carex cherokeensis - Sorghastrum nutans Woodland
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This mesic calcareous upland woodland community occurs in areas of deep, moist soil usually on nearly level terrain or possibly in topographically protected areas in the Upper West Gulf Coastal Plain of Arkansas. These communities are typically bordered by dry-mesic blackland prairie. Fire plays a role in the formation and maintenance of the community as <i>Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana</i> readily invades and suppresses the herbaceous vegetation. The trees are of medium height (to 14 m [45 feet]). Dominant tree species include <i>Quercus shumardii</i> and <i>Carya myristiciformis</i> with <i>Quercus muehlenbergii</i> and <i>Quercus stellata</i> as occasional. <i>Berchemia scandens, Cercis canadensis var. canadensis, Fraxinus americana, Juglans nigra, Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana, Liquidambar styraciflua, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Frangula caroliniana, Smilax bona-nox</i>, and <i>Smilax rotundifolia</i> occur as occasional sapling, shrub, and woody vine species. The herbaceous layer can be moderately-tall (to 120 cm [4 feet]) and dense or, where fire-suppressed, short (60 cm [2 feet] or less) and sparse. Dominant herbaceous species include <i>Carex cherokeensis</i> and <i>Sorghastrum nutans</i> with <i>Arisaema dracontium, Asclepias purpurascens, Asplenium platyneuron, Symphyotrichum cordifolium, Carex glaucodea, Echinacea purpurea, Galium circaezans, Penstemon digitalis, Ruellia strepens, Salvia lyrata, Spigelia marilandica</i>, and <i>Toxicodendron radicans</i>. During periods of prolonged fire suppression, the woodlands become denser and herbaceous vegetation abundance and diversity decreases. Soils are deep, alkaline clays, with high shrink-swell character, of the Sumter Series. The largest and highest quality remnants of this community occur at the International Paper Blackland Prairie and the Brewer tract. A small remnant of this community at the southwestern corner of Terre Noire Natural Area has responded well to fire management, with reduced woody vegetation density and increased herbaceous layer diversity. The type location is in Clark County, Arkansas. Other examples are known from Howard County, and it should be found in Hempstead, Little River, Nevada, and Sevier counties, Arkansas.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:35962-{516F2635-A4D4-48EC-8E57-5DE1EDFFEE75}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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