Name:
Abies magnifica var. magnifica - Abies magnifica var. shastensis - Tsuga mertensiana Forest Group
Reference:
NatureServe Biotics 2019
Description:
This group includes high-elevation (1600-2700 m [4850-9000 feet]) forests and woodlands from the southern Sierra Nevada north and west into southern Oregon. These forests and woodlands are dominated by <i>Abies magnifica var. magnifica, Abies magnifica var. shastensis, Abies procera</i>, and/or <i>Tsuga mertensiana</i>. Other conifers that can occur in varying mixtures include <i>Pinus contorta var. murrayana, Pinus monticola, Pinus jeffreyi</i>, and <i>Pinus albicaulis</i>. <i>Pinus contorta</i> in Oregon indicates lower productivity where it intergrades with <i>Abies magnifica var. shastensis</i>. Associations range from mesic to moist, and some sites have mesic indicator species, such as <i>Ligusticum grayi</i> or <i>Thalictrum fendleri</i>. Common understory species include <i>Ceanothus cordulatus</i> (in seral stands), <i>Chrysolepis sempervirens, Quercus sadleriana, Quercus vacciniifolia, Ribes viscosissimum, Symphoricarpos mollis, Symphoricarpos rotundifolius</i>, and <i>Vaccinium membranaceum</i>. Characteristic forbs include <i>Eucephalus breweri, Pedicularis semibarbata</i>, and <i>Hieracium albiflorum</i>. Heavy snowpack is a major source of soil moisture throughout the growing season. The limiting factors can be either cold-air drainage or ponding, or coarser soils (pumice versus ash, for example). This group commonly occurs above mixed conifer forests with <i>Abies lowiana</i> and overlaps in elevation with forests and woodlands of <i>Pinus contorta var. murrayana</i>. On volcanic sites of lower productivity, stands may be more open woodland in structure and with poor-site understory species such as <i>Wyethia mollis</i>. This group is typically found on deep, well-drained soils throughout this elevational zone from the southern Sierra Nevada north into the southern Cascades, Klamath Mountains, North Coast Ranges of northern California and southern Oregon. Soils in the North Coast Ranges and Klamath Mountains are mainly derived from granitic and metasedimentary substrates. Driving ecological processes include occasional blowdown, insect outbreaks and stand-replacing fire.
Accession Code:
urn:lsid:vegbank.org:commConcept:40332-{8539424A-7838-4A35-B18C-6758D1B36F22}
Plot-observations of this Community Concept:
0
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