Name:
Leymus innovatus - Festuca idahoensis - Leucopoa kingii Grassland Group
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This is an upper montane to subalpine grassland group is dominated by perennial grasses and forbs on relatively dry sites in the northern Rocky Mountains and Cascades, but is more extensive in the Rocky Mountains cordillera, from the Canadian Rockies south into western Montana, northern Wyoming, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Idaho. The herbaceous layer is frequently composed of <i>Achnatherum nelsonii, Calamagrostis rubescens, Festuca idahoensis</i>, and <i>Leucopoa kingii</i> with many other perennial graminoid species present to codominant, such as <i>Achnatherum occidentale, Achnatherum richardsonii, Danthonia intermedia, Deschampsia cespitosa, Elymus trachycaulus, Koeleria macrantha, Leymus innovatus, Phleum alpinum, Poa fendleriana, Trisetum spicatum</i>, and a variety of Carices, such as <i>Carex filifolia, Carex hoodii, Carex elynoides, Carex obtusata</i>, and <i>Carex scirpoidea</i>. Important forbs include <i>Chamerion angustifolium, Eriogonum caespitosum, Fragaria virginiana, Lupinus argenteus var. laxiflorus, Lupinus sericeus, Oxytropis campestris, Phlox pulvinata, Potentilla diversifolia</i>, and <i>Potentilla flabellifolia</i>. The upper montane to subalpine dry grassland stands range from small meadows to large open parks surrounded by conifer trees but lack tree cover within them. In relatively mesic areas such as the northern Rocky Mountains and Cascades, it is found on drier sites, particularly south-facing slopes or ridgetops. In general, soil textures are much finer, and soils are often deeper under grasslands than in the neighboring forests. Although these grasslands are composed primarily of tussock-forming species, they do exhibit a dense sod that makes root penetration difficult for tree species. Disturbance such as fire also plays a role in maintaining these open grassy areas. This group is similar to ~Central Rocky Mountain Lower Montane, Foothill & Valley Grassland Group (G273)$$ but is found at higher elevations and is more often composed of species of <i>Festuca, Achnatherum</i>, and/or <i>Hesperostipa</i> with additional floristic components of more subalpine taxa. It is also similar to ~Rocky Mountain-North Pacific Subalpine-Montane Mesic Grassland & Meadow Group (G271)$$, differing by occurring in drier settings and being predominantly grasslands rather than forby and grassy mesic meadows. Occurrences of this group are often more forb-rich than ~Southern Rocky Mountain Montane-Subalpine Grassland Group (G268)$$, which tends to be drier.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40037-{6CCBB9BE-7B71-4C25-A259-D065D51B3755}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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