Name:
Pinus echinata - Quercus falcata - Quercus stellata Forest & Woodland Group
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This group encompasses forests and woodlands of the interior plateaus, Appalachians, Piedmont, Ozark-Ouachita, and upper coastal plain regions (north of the primary range of <i>Pinus palustris</i> in the coastal plains) in which <i>Pinus echinata</i> is the canopy dominant (or at least an important component). Examples can occur on a variety of topographic and landscape positions, including ridgetops, upper and midslopes, as well as lower elevations (generally below 700 m [2300 feet]) in the Southern Appalachians such as mountain valleys, as well as on rolling uplands in the Upper East Gulf Coastal Plain. Examples occur on a variety of acidic soils or bedrock types. Stands may be codominated by <i>Quercus</i> spp., <i>Carya</i> spp., and other hardwoods, with the varying proportion of pine versus hardwood depending on management (both commercial forestry and ecological management), particularly time since fire. Although examples of this group occur throughout this broad area, there is considerable local variation in their extent in the landscape and in their structure and composition. In more open stands (such as ones in naturally drier regions or ones which have experienced more recent/frequent fire), the understory is characterized by <i>Andropogon gerardii, Schizachyrium scoparium</i>, and other prairie graminoid elements. In the lower elevations of the Southern Appalachians, and under current conditions, stands are dominated by <i>Pinus echinata</i> or <i>Pinus virginiana</i>. <i>Pinus rigida</i> may sometimes be present. Stands found outside of the coastal plains in which <i>Pinus palustris</i> is a component are also included here. Hardwoods are sometimes abundant, especially dry-site oaks such as <i>Quercus falcata, Quercus montana, Quercus stellata</i>, and <i>Quercus coccinea</i>, but also <i>Carya glabra</i> and other hickories. The shrub layer may be well-developed, with <i>Vaccinium pallidum, Gaylussacia baccata</i>, or other acid-tolerant species being most characteristic. Herbs are usually sparse but may include <i>Pityopsis graminifolia</i> and <i>Tephrosia virginiana</i>. There is some regional variation in composition across the range of this group, with examples in the Ozark-Ouachita area and the upper coastal plain lacking <i>Pinus rigida, Pinus virginiana</i>, and <i>Quercus montana</i>. In the upper coastal plains, where fire is more frequent, stands of vegetation affiliated with this group may develop a relatively pure and open canopy of <i>Pinus echinata</i> with scattered overstory trees and an herbaceous-dominated understory, but such examples are rare on the modern landscape unless maintained by ecological management. More typical are examples in which <i>Quercus</i> spp., <i>Carya</i> spp., <i>Liquidambar styraciflua, Liriodendron tulipifera, Acer</i> spp., and <i>Nyssa sylvatica</i> have become prominent in the midstory and overstory and in which herbaceous patches are rare.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:39748-{5AEB5905-20C2-47E9-A422-6E422F6F1E66}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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