Name:
Andropogon gerardii - Sorghastrum nutans Appalachian Gravel Riverscour Alliance
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This alliance includes scoured riverbank "prairies" of the Central Appalachian regions of the United States, including the Allegheny Plateau, Cumberland Plateau, and the adjacent Ridge and Valley. These may be called "riverside prairies," "linear prairies," "rivershore grasslands," "scoured riverine prairies," or other local names. These grasslands may be associated with dry cobble or gravel riverbanks, as well as flood-scoured, acidic or calcareous bedrock exposures associated with major rivers. This includes riverine gravel/cobble bar "prairies" along the upper Cumberland River in Kentucky and Tennessee, as well as scour areas along high-gradient sections of major rivers, such as in gorges in Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and possibly farther west. In addition to <i>Panicum virgatum, Andropogon gerardii</i>, and/or <i>Sorghastrum nutans</i>, examples may also contain <i>Schizachyrium scoparium</i> and <i>Chasmanthium latifolium</i>, any of which could be locally dominant. Examples of this alliance have mixed shrub and herbaceous physiognomy and may include a few taller trees. Trees are characteristically less than 5 m tall (but scattered individuals may approach 10 m), and canopy cover characteristically ranges from 0 to 10% (but in intervals between flood events may locally approach 30%).
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:38321-{9807D580-C204-4CA1-8E38-6A9E96057A77}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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