Name:
Pinus palustris - Pinus echinata / Quercus marilandica - (Quercus montana) / Vaccinium pallidum Woodland
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This is one of several associations representing longleaf pine stands of interior regions of the southeastern United States, including the Piedmont, Cumberland Plateau, and Southern Ridge and Valley. This type occurs at moderate elevations (to 600 m) in mountainous regions and have been previously called montane longleaf. Other longleaf pine stands found at Pine Mountain, Georgia, on serpentine soils, or wet Piedmont soils are covered by other community types [see Similar Associations]. Examples of this type occur on steep, often rocky ridges composed of various rock types, including sandstone, quartzite, phyllite, mica schists, and gneiss. Vegetation structure and species composition are variable and depend on previous disturbance and the frequency of fire. The canopy ranges from open to closed and may be dominated solely by <i>Pinus palustris</i>, or support a mixture of other pines and oaks, although stands in northern Alabama with nearly equal mixtures of <i>Pinus palustris</i> and <i>Quercus montana</i> are accommodated by another association. The pine canopy, in addition to <i>Pinus palustris</i>, often includes <i>Pinus echinata</i>, and sometimes includes (presumably due to reduction of historical fire regimes) <i>Pinus taeda</i> and <i>Pinus virginiana</i>. Oaks can occur as canopy or subcanopy components and may include various combinations of <i>Quercus marilandica, Quercus stellata, Quercus montana, Quercus coccinea, Quercus velutina, Quercus alba</i>, and <i>Quercus falcata</i>. Other characteristic subcanopy trees are <i>Nyssa sylvatica, Oxydendrum arboreum, Acer rubrum var. rubrum, Sassafras albidum, Carya pallida, Carya tomentosa</i>, and sometimes <i>Cornus florida</i>. The shrub stratum is of variable density; characteristic species include <i>Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium arboreum, Vaccinium stamineum, Symplocos tinctoria</i>, and (in some portions of the range) <i>Gaylussacia frondosa</i> and <i>Vaccinium tenellum</i>. The herb layer may be highly suppressed following fire exclusion and canopy closure, but can be dense and grassy with fire. Characteristic species are <i>Schizachyrium scoparium, Sorghastrum nutans, Andropogon ternarius, Danthonia sericea, Danthonia spicata, Iris verna, Pteridium aquilinum var. pseudocaudatum, Solidago odora var. odora, Tephrosia virginiana, Clitoria mariana, Lespedeza</i> spp., <i>Desmodium</i> spp., <i>Pityopsis graminifolia var. latifolia, Dichanthelium commutatum, Coreopsis major, Silphium compositum, Parthenium integrifolium var. integrifolium, Scleria triglomerata, Liatris</i> sp., and <i>Solidago</i> sp.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:36502-{C6903CCF-F06D-4105-8C3E-1F79539A9B33}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
45
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