Name:
Pinus strobus - Quercus montana Appalachian Forest Alliance
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This alliance includes dry pine-oak forests dominated by <i>Pinus strobus</i> occurring either with <i>Quercus coccinea</i> and/or <i>Quercus montana</i> in drier associations, or with <i>Quercus alba, Quercus rubra</i>, and/or <i>Quercus velutina</i> in dry-mesic to mesic ones. Typical species in the subcanopy of the drier associations include <i>Acer rubrum var. rubrum, Cornus florida, Nyssa sylvatica</i>, and <i>Oxydendrum arboreum</i>. <i>Pinus strobus</i> is a consistent constituent of the canopy and usually occurs as supercanopy trees, as well. In these more mesic associations, <i>Quercus alba, Quercus rubra</i>, and <i>Quercus velutina</i> are also important canopy trees along with minor amounts of <i>Acer rubrum, Carya tomentosa, Liriodendron tulipifera, Quercus montana</i>, and <i>Tsuga canadensis</i>. These forests often have dense ericaceous shrub strata with species such as <i>Gaylussacia</i> spp., Kalmia latifolia, Rhododendron maximum, and <i>Vaccinium</i> spp. Herbaceous strata have low species richness and are composed of species typical of dry montane forests, such as <i>Chamaelirium luteum, Chimaphila maculata, Epigaea repens, Galax urceolata, Goodyera pubescens, Smilax glauca, Smilax rotundifolia</i>, and <i>Viola hastata</i>. These forests occur on dry to upper slopes and ridgetops, as well as dry-mesic to mesic midslopes at low elevations (below 915 m [3000 feet]) in the Blue Ridge escarpment region. In the Ridge and Valley of Virginia, these forests are known from north-facing slopes over shale substrates and on lower to middle-elevation knobs and side ridges.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:38330-{1A4C9765-76D8-497F-A301-8DA4BE070F20}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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