Name:
Quercus muehlenbergii - Quercus shumardii - Carya (carolinae-septentrionalis, ovata) Forest
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This association includes dry-mesic forests dominated by varying proportions of <i>Quercus muehlenbergii</i> and <i>Quercus shumardii</i>. It occurs in the Interior Low Plateau of Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee, and also extends into the Ridge and Valley and Cumberland Plateau of Alabama and Georgia, on soils derived from limestones or other basic substrates, on gently rolling to rolling topography or on upper to mid slopes. In addition to the nominal species, the canopy may also contain some mixture of <i>Acer saccharum, Carya glabra, Fraxinus americana, Fraxinus quadrangulata</i>, and <i>Ulmus serotina</i>. Particularly towards the southern portion of the association's distribution, <i>Carya carolinae-septentrionalis</i> joins or replaces <i>Carya ovata</i> as the predominant hickory. Subcanopy species include <i>Quercus stellata, Aesculus glabra, Gleditsia triacanthos, Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana, Ulmus alata, Ulmus americana, Ulmus serotina</i> (to the south), <i>Ulmus thomasii</i> (to the north), <i>Cercis canadensis var. canadensis, Celtis laevigata var. laevigata, Ostrya virginiana, Fraxinus quadrangulata, Prunus mexicana</i>, and <i>Juglans nigra</i>. Shrubs include <i>Forestiera ligustrina, Frangula caroliniana, Hypericum frondosum, Rhus aromatica var. aromatica, Sideroxylon lycioides, Symphoricarpos orbiculatus</i>, and <i>Viburnum rufidulum</i>. <i>Bignonia capreolata</i> is a prominent liana. Other woody vines include <i>Lonicera sempervirens</i> and <i>Parthenocissus quinquefolia</i>. Herbs, a mixture of submesic and xeric limestone species, include <i>Fleischmannia incarnata, Lithospermum tuberosum, Polygonatum biflorum, Polymnia canadensis, Scutellaria ovata, Sedum pulchellum, Packera anonyma, Tragia cordata, Ruellia humilis, Ruellia strepens, Matelea gonocarpos, Arabis laevigata var. laevigata, Cuphea viscosissima, Galium</i> sp., <i>Diarrhena americana, Elymus</i> sp., <i>Senna marilandica, Chimaphila maculata, Salvia urticifolia, Tiarella cordifolia, Triosteum angustifolium, Asplenium platyneuron</i>, and <i>Asplenium resiliens</i>. Examples of this association may grade into ~<i>Juniperus virginiana - Fraxinus quadrangulata / Polymnia canadensis - (Astranthium integrifolium)</i> Woodland (CEGL003754)$$, ~<i>Quercus alba - Quercus rubra - Quercus muehlenbergii / Cercis canadensis</i> Forest (CEGL002070)$$, or ~<i>Quercus muehlenbergii - Quercus (shumardii, stellata) / Cercis canadensis / Viburnum rufidulum</i> Forest (CEGL007699)$$. Most examples observed seem to be generally subxeric. More mesic examples, formerly regarded as a "mesic variant" of this association, are now accommodated as ~<i>Quercus shumardii - Quercus muehlenbergii - Acer (floridanum, saccharum) / Ostrya virginiana</i> Forest (CEGL008442)$$.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:35995-{4B69E590-DB4D-4C64-9C19-39FD5CC80139}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
8
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