Name:
Vaccinium corymbosum Peat Shrubland Alliance
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This alliance, found in the eastern midwestern and northeastern United States and probably many of the eastern Canadian provinces, contains tall-shrub swamps dominated by <i>Vaccinium corymbosum</i>. This tall-shrub bog thicket occurs on oligotrophic to weakly minerotrophic peat soils, commonly as a border thicket around more open dwarf heath shrub peatlands or within small, isolated basins. Significant seasonal water level fluctuation can occur, especially in isolated basins without inlet or outlet streams. A tall-shrub layer is characterized by abundant <i>Vaccinium corymbosum</i>, with <i>Chamaedaphne calyculata, Gaylussacia baccata, Kalmia angustifolia, Lyonia ligustrina, Ilex mucronata</i>, and <i>Rhododendron canadense</i> in more northern or cooler microclimates, and <i>Ilex verticillata</i> and <i>Rhododendron viscosum</i> in the south. In locally wetter areas, <i>Cephalanthus occidentalis</i> or <i>Decodon verticillatus</i> can occur. Coastal occurrences may have additional shrub species such as <i>Eubotrys racemosa, Clethra alnifolia</i>, and <i>Gaylussacia dumosa</i>. Sparse, scattered trees may occur, including <i>Acer rubrum, Betula populifolia, Larix laricina, Nyssa sylvatica, Picea mariana, Pinus rigida</i>, or <i>Pinus strobus</i>, with species dependent on environmental setting. The herbaceous layer tends to be sparse, although can be locally abundant. Common herbs include <i>Carex trisperma, Maianthemum trifolium, Osmunda cinnamomea, Sarracenia purpurea, Thelypteris palustris, Triadenum virginicum</i>, and <i>Woodwardia virginica</i>. <i>Sphagnum</i> mosses blanket well-developed hummocks and hollows, including <i>Sphagnum capillifolium, Sphagnum centrale, Sphagnum fimbriatum, Sphagnum fuscum, Sphagnum magellanicum</i>, and <i>Sphagnum rubellum</i>. These tall shrublands can occur at margins of kettles in glaciated regions, and in basins or at the heads of streams throughout the range. Soils are usually deep peats or mucks, and the water is often acidic.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:38148-{16E89BF4-B7C8-4DA6-B6A4-3099EDE7D026}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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