Name:
Quercus muehlenbergii - Fraxinus quadrangulata - Juniperus virginiana Woodland Alliance
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This alliance includes a variety of woodlands found on shallow soils derived from limestones, dolomites, or other calcareous rocks. Stands are dominated by some combination of dry-site, basophilic <i>Quercus</i> species (e.g., <i>Quercus muehlenbergii, Quercus stellata</i>), <i>Fraxinus quadrangulata</i>, and <i>Juniperus virginiana var. virginiana</i>. Other canopy or subcanopy species present may include <i>Carya ovata, Carya carolinae-septentrionalis, Celtis laevigata, Celtis occidentalis, Cercis canadensis, Ulmus alata</i>, and/or <i>Ulmus serotina</i>. Some typical shrubs include <i>Forestiera ligustrina, Frangula caroliniana, Hypericum frondosum, Prunus angustifolia, Rhus aromatica, Symphoricarpos orbiculatus, Sideroxylon lycioides</i>, and <i>Viburnum rufidulum</i>. Some herbs that may be found include <i>Astranthium integrifolium, Lithospermum canescens, Polymnia canadensis</i>, and <i>Schizachyrium scoparium</i>. The unusual (and mostly historic) ~<i>Fraxinus quadrangulata - Quercus macrocarpa - Quercus muehlenbergii / Arundinaria gigantea / Elymus</i> spp. Woodland (CEGL004436)$$ of Kentucky would have contained <i>Aesculus glabra, Gymnocladus dioicus</i>, and <i>Juglans nigra</i>, and <i>Carya laciniosa</i> and <i>Quercus shumardii</i> in moister areas, with extensive locally dominant swards of <i>Arundinaria gigantea</i>. This woodland vegetation occurs primarily in dry rocky sites, which contain outcrops of Ordovician (or Mississippian) limestone or dolomite, including ridges, isolated eroded knobs, or upper slopes. Soils primarily accumulate in fissures between the limestone. It may occur in association with limestone glades, or as a small patch within a matrix of dry to dry-mesic limestone oak forest.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:38560-{E637DA73-B675-4DF7-975A-3C79BD9DC64C}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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