Volume 64 – Issue 1 (Mar 1999)

During botanical surveys in the Table Rock Reservoir watershed in Pickens and Greenville Counties, South Carolina (1992-93), observations were made on a unique vegetation community located at the base of vertical north-facing cliffs of Table Rock. Sheets of ice and rock detach from the cliffs and fall up to 305 m (1,000 ft) and have created small, narrow ponds with sand terraces above boulder fields. This unusual habitat never receives direct sunlight, is unobstructed by woody vegetation, and is continuously cool and wet. Found at approximately 549 m (1,800 ft), a moderately high elevation for the state, the community and habitat characteristics of the ice ponds show affinities to communities of much higher elevations in North Carolina and of much higher latitudes. Four of the fifty-three species found in the vicinity of the ice ponds are considered here to be Pleistocene relicts: Carex barrattii, Carex buxbaumii, Sanguisorba canadensis, and Scirpus cespitosus.

Magnolia macrophylla has been variously reported in the literature as having been discovered by André Michaux (1746-1802) in either North Carolina in 1789 or Tennessee in 1795 or perhaps by William Bartram (1739-1823) in Alabama in the 1770’s. The present study uses a variety of source materials, including primary sources, to sort out the conflicting geographic claims and proposes the location of Michaux’s North Carolina sites from new field studies. 

New River Gorge National River includes 85.3 km (53.0 mi) of the New River and occupies over 25,123 ha (62,080 ac) in Summers, Raleigh, and Fayette Counties of southern West Virginia. The vascular flora was surveyed from September 1992 through October 1994. A total of 909 taxa of vascular plants representing 448 genera and 131 families was recorded. Seventy-nine percent of the taxa recorded are native to West Virginia. Currently 1342 vascular plant taxa have been documented from the New River Gorge as a result of this work as well as the works of Grafton and McGraw, and Phillips. A total of 27 taxa reported in this study have some special designation of rarity in West Virginia. Of the 27 rare taxa, 13 are new records for the New River Gorge. Fifty new populations of these rare taxa were discovered. Eleven natural plant communities were described according to the dominant species as well as certain recurring physical features. A comparison of the flora of New River Gorge with the flora of other river gorges in the central Appalachian Mountains indicates that New River Gorge appears to be, floristically, one of the most diverse river gorges in the central and southern Appalachians.

The Kisatchie Sandstone Hills of Louisiana include the Kisatchie Ranger District of the Kisatchie National Forest, one of the few landscapes on the Western Gulf coastal plain where significant longleaf pine communities remain. Fifty-one mature stands were sampled. Occurrences of ground flora and overstory species were recorded. Soil and physiographic descriptions were recorded and a topsoil sample was collected. Data were subjected to Two Way Indicator Species Analysis (TWINSPAN) classification and hybrid Detrended Canonical Correspondence Analysis-Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCCA-DCA). Ordination scores corresponded to topographic position, soil texture, and soil nutrients. Ordination and classification results were used to describe ten community types ranging from moist-mesic floodplains to upland sandstone outcrops.

Fawn Pond, a part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area (Ohio), originated as a water-filled gravel pit. The study area, consisting of Fawn Pond and surrounding land, contains three taxonomic subdivisions, 72 families, 193 genera, and 310 species and hybrids of vascular plants. Forty-eight species and hybrids represent additions to a recently produced flora of the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area. Three species augment a flora of the glaciated Allegheny Plateau region of Ohio. One additional species represents a state record for Ohio. The total number of species is striking, because of the long history of severe, human-induced disturbances of the area.

Vegetation species composition and richness was examined in a riparian savanna in the nonglaciated Allegheny Plateau of northwestern Pennsylvania. Microtopography within the savanna consisted of numerous small, dry ridges alternating with saturated depressions. The sparse (tree density = 54.7 stems/ ha; basal area = 7.1 m²/ha; overstory cover = 31.9%) savanna overstory (trees ≥10.0 cm dbh) was composed of six species with Prunus serotina Ehrh., Populus tremuloides Michx., and Amelanchier arborea (Michx. f) Fern. of greatest importance. Ten woody plant and 50 herb species were recorded from the herbaceous layer (all vascular plants ≤ 1 m in height) of the savanna with wetland species dominant in wet depressions and upland species dominant on dry ridges. Results of this study indicate that riparian savannas of the nonglaciated Allegheny Plateau can support a relatively rich flora consisting of an unusual mix of upland and wetland species, a marked contrast to the low species richness typical of upland savannas of the region.

We examined species composition and structure of riparian forest (woody plant stems ≥2.5 cm dbh) and herbaceous layer (vascular plants ≤2 m in height) of two upper Allegheny River islands (Hemlock and King Islands, Forest County) in the nonglaciated Allegheny Plateau of northwestern Pennsylvania. Twelve species were recorded from the large tree stratum (stems ≥10.0 cm dbh) at Hemlock and King Islands with Acer saccharinum and Platanus occidentalis as leading dominants. Sixteen species were recorded from the small tree stratum (stems < 10.0 cm dbh but ≥2.5 cm dbh) at both islands; Fraxinus americana, Carya cordiformis, and Salix nigra were dominant. Fifty-nine vascular plant species were recorded from the herbaceous layer of both islands with Phalaris arundinacea, Viola sororia, Geum canadense, Pilea pumila, Lysimachia nummularia, L. ciliata, Alliaria petiolata, and Polygonum scandens as dominant species. Sev enteen percent of the herbaceous layer flora of both islands was non-native including three species (Alliaria petiolata, Polygonum cuspidatum, Rosa multiflora) that are invasive pests. Tree density (stems ≥2.5 cm dbh) ranged from 78 to 138 stems/ha, indicating a relatively open, savanna-like forest. Unimodal diameter distributions for Acer saccharinum and Platanus occidentalis revealed an underrepresentation of smaller size classes suggesting that either these species recruit episodically or that altered hydrologic regimens have led to reproductive stagnation.

This long-awaited guide to the complete vascular flora of Florida has finally arrived. It covers over 4,000 taxa that are native or naturalized in Florida: from the panhandle and peninsula to the tropics and the keys. Endemics and exotics are identified by special symbols in the text, and even plants not seen for a hundred years are included. As one who visits Florida from time to time, and seeks a better understanding of the varied flora, I found this new book a joy to have and hold. We have all been frustrated by the long-time lack of a modern flora for northeastern Florida (there are some species found only there). In addition to remedying that shortcoming, this new volume completes the heretofore-fragmented picture of plant distributions across the state based on the currently available regional floras (good as they are).