Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Water Oak - (White Oak, Willow Oak) Floodplain Forest

Colloquial Name: Eastern Highland Rim Water Oak Floodplain Forest

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This forest is found on poorly drained, flat bottomlands of intermittent streams and depressional areas in otherwise flat alluvial floodplains of the Interior Low Plateau of Tennessee; the soils are formed on recent alluvium. Quercus nigra is typically the dominant species of this temporarily flooded forest; the most common associates are Quercus alba and Quercus phellos. Some examples have Quercus lyrata as a dominant or codominant. Other canopy species can include Quercus pagoda (especially to the south), Quercus michauxii, Quercus shumardii, Quercus palustris (in northerly examples), Ulmus americana, Carya tomentosa, Carya glabra, Carya ovata, Nyssa biflora, Liquidambar styraciflua, Liriodendron tulipifera, Celtis spp., Acer rubrum, Platanus occidentalis, Prunus serotina, and others. The variability of canopy species composition from occurrence to occurrence may be relatively large. Pinus taeda could be occasionally present in the canopy as an invader from nearby plantations. Subcanopy and shrub species include Carpinus caroliniana, Cornus florida, Acer negundo, Acer saccharinum, Salix nigra, Alnus serrulata, Ilex opaca, and Itea virginica, among others. Woody vines are an important component of this community and include Toxicodendron radicans, Campsis radicans, Bignonia capreolata, Smilax rotundifolia, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Vitis spp., and others. Herbs typically include Triadenum walteri, Osmunda cinnamomea, Impatiens capensis, and Carex spp. Exotics such as Ligustrum sinense, Lonicera japonica, and Microstegium vimineum increase following disturbance.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: Various examples of this association occur at Arnold Air Force Base, Coffee and Franklin counties, Tennessee. Soil types include Hamblen, Prader, Greendale, Lee, Lobelville, and Purdy. Examples on Lawrence and Guthrie soils include Quercus nigra. A successional, post-disturbance variant occurs on the margins of a large impoundment reservoir; its canopy contains Quercus lyrata, Quercus nigra, and Quercus phellos, along with successional species such as Liriodendron tulipifera, Prunus serotina, and Acer rubrum.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available

note: No Data Available