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CEGL000181 Pinus ponderosa / Calamagrostis rubescens Forest
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Ponderosa Pine / Pinegrass Forest
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This association has only been described from central and northeastern Oregon, and adjacent Washington and Idaho. It is most often found between 1310 and 1830 m (4300-6000 feet) on all aspects with slopes less than 20%. Soils range from sandy or silty loams to silty clay loams and clay. Parent material is residuum and colluvium of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, most with a mantle of ash or loess. This open forest resembles a park-like setting typified by large trees mantling a grassy floor. It usually consists of large-diameter Pinus ponderosa averaging 45% (17-81%) cover, which represents the only tree. Shrub cover is low with the most common associate, Symphoricarpos albus having less than 2% canopy cover. Calamagrostis rubescens averages 38% (7-70%) cover and Carex geyeri supports an average of 20% (2-45%) cover. Forbs include Achillea millefolium, Lupinus caudatus, Arnica cordifolia, and Fragaria vesca ssp. bracteata, all occurring at less than 12%.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: There are stands which look exactly like this in Washington and northwestern Oregon which have been called Pseudotsuga menziesii - Pinus ponderosa / Calamagrostis rubescens, and differ only in having occasional Pseudotsuga menziesii reproduction. Hall (1973) included this association in his "mixed conifer-pinegrass" type, lumping it with the more common Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens community. Cover of the tree canopy may average less than 60%.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: This woodland association is dominated in all size classes by the needle-leaved evergreen tree Pinus ponderosa, which average 45% cover in the canopy. Regeneration of ponderosa is episodic, which results in patchy stands. The other conifers, Pseudotsuga menziesii or Juniperus occidentalis, may be present as seedlings or saplings, but in small amounts, and they apparently will not become dominant. A few scattered shrubs may occur, but total cover of shrubs is less than 5%. The herbaceous layer is lush and dominated by the perennial, rhizomatous grass Calamagrostis rubescens, typically with >40% cover. The perennial sedge Carex geyeri is also abundant, with cover ranging from 10% to over 20%. Perennial forbs commonly occurring include Achillea millefolium, Lupinus caudatus, Arnica cordifolia, Fragaria vesca ssp. bracteata (= Fragaria crinita), Lupinus argenteus var. laxiflorus (= Lupinus laxiflorus), and Fragaria virginiana. Total forb cover typically ranges from 20-30%.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This association is found in mountainous regions of eastern Washington, northeastern Oregon and west-central Idaho. The climate of this region is Temperate Oceanic, with a distinct summer dry season. Winters are characterized by cloudiness, fog, high precipitation (usually as snow), and less fluctuation in temperatures than in a continental climatic regime.
This association occurs at moderate elevations (610-1830 m) on primarily flat sites with shallow soils in the Pseudotsuga menziesii or Abies grandis zones (Franklin and Dyrness 1973). Occasionally sites are on topography of rolling to undulating ridgetops, or upper and middle slopes, and slopes can be up to 20% in some examples. Soils are derived from residuum and colluvium of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks, typically with a mantle of volcanic ash and/or loess. The depth of this ash/loess mantle averages 53 cm. Textures vary from sandy loams through silt loams to clay (usually in the B horizons), and most soils are rocky in all sub-surface horizons.
This association occurs at moderate elevations (610-1830 m) on primarily flat sites with shallow soils in the Pseudotsuga menziesii or Abies grandis zones (Franklin and Dyrness 1973). Occasionally sites are on topography of rolling to undulating ridgetops, or upper and middle slopes, and slopes can be up to 20% in some examples. Soils are derived from residuum and colluvium of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks, typically with a mantle of volcanic ash and/or loess. The depth of this ash/loess mantle averages 53 cm. Textures vary from sandy loams through silt loams to clay (usually in the B horizons), and most soils are rocky in all sub-surface horizons.
Geographic Range: This woodland association is only known from the Ochoco and Blue mountains in central and northeastern Oregon, and just across the stateline in Washington and Idaho.
Nations: US
States/Provinces: ID, OR, WA
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.685719
Confidence Level: Low - Poorly Documented
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G2Q
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.B Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass | S15 | 1.B |
| Formation | 1.B.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Nb Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Division | D194 | 1.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nb.2 Ponderosa Pine - Douglas-fir - Limber Pine Central Rocky Mountain Dry Forest Macrogroup | M501 | 1.B.2.Nb.2 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nb.2.a Ponderosa Pine Central Rocky Mountain Open Woodland Group | G213 | 1.B.2.Nb.2.a |
| Alliance | A3447 Ponderosa Pine / Herbaceous Understory Central Rocky Mountain Open Woodland Alliance | A3447 | 1.B.2.Nb.2.a |
| Association | CEGL000181 Ponderosa Pine / Pinegrass Forest | CEGL000181 | 1.B.2.Nb.2.a |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens Habitat Type (Daubenmire and Daubenmire 1968)
? Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens association (Hall 1973)
? Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens association (Franklin and Dyrness 1973)
= Mixed Conifer-Pinegrass Association (Hall 1973)
? Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens association (Hall 1973)
? Pseudotsuga menziesii / Calamagrostis rubescens association (Franklin and Dyrness 1973)
= Mixed Conifer-Pinegrass Association (Hall 1973)
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- Daubenmire, R. F., and J. B. Daubenmire. 1968. Forest vegetation of eastern Washington and northern Idaho. Washington State University Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin No. 60. 104 pp.
- Franklin, J. F., and C. T. Dyrness. 1973. Natural vegetation of Oregon and Washington. General Technical Report PNW-8. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station, Portland, OR. 417 pp.
- Hall, F. C. 1973. Plant communities of the Blue Mountains in eastern Oregon and southeastern Washington. R6 Area Guide 3-1. USDA Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region, Portland, OR. 62 pp.
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- WNHP [Washington Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data files. Washington Natural Heritage Program, Department of Natural Resources, Olympia, WA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.
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