Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Longleaf Pine - (Shortleaf Pine, Loblolly Pine) / Slender Little Bluestem - Tall Ironweed Woodland

Colloquial Name: East Gulf Coastal Plain Lorman Soil Longleaf Pine Woodland

Hierarchy Level:  Association

Type Concept: This longleaf pine woodland is described from the hilly and ruggedly dissected uplands of the Homochitto National Forest of Mississippi, where it is apparently restricted to the Lorman soil. The canopy of this community is dominated by some mixture of Pinus palustris, Pinus taeda, and/or Pinus echinata. The precise proportion depends on stand history and current management. In some examples, Pinus taeda is codominant with Pinus echinata limited or absent. Typical subcanopy species include Quercus falcata, Quercus marilandica, Liquidambar styraciflua, and Diospyros virginiana. In managed stands, these hardwoods may be reduced to presence in the tall- or low-shrub strata, along with Acer rubrum. Other shrubs which are typically present include Vaccinium arboreum, Vaccinium elliottii, Ilex decidua, Ilex vomitoria, Ilex opaca, Morella cerifera, Rhus copallinum, Crataegus marshallii, Baccharis halimifolia, and Gaylussacia dumosa. Woody vines may include Vitis rotundifolia and Gelsemium sempervirens. The herbaceous stratum is diverse, becoming denser with fire management. Typical components include Schizachyrium tenerum, Andropogon virginicus, Dichanthelium spp., Muhlenbergia capillaris, Paspalum floridanum, Gymnopogon sp., Vernonia angustifolia, Liatris pycnostachya, Liatris squarrosa, Solidago odora, Eupatorium album, Eupatorium rotundifolium, Eupatorium semiserratum, Helianthus angustifolius, Helianthus hirsutus, Pityopsis graminifolia var. latifolia?, Symphyotrichum adnatum, Symphyotrichum dumosum, Eurybia hemispherica, Ionactis linariifolius, Eryngium yuccifolium, Crotalaria purshii, Rhynchosia reniformis, Tephrosia virginiana, Centrosema virginianum, Asclepias verticillata, Asclepias viridiflora?, Rubus flagellaris, and Pteridium aquilinum var. pseudocaudatum. Chasmanthium sessiliflorum may be present, tending to be more plentiful under areas of greater canopy closure. This association is described from hilly and ruggedly dissected uplands of the Homochitto National Forest, where it is apparently restricted to the Lorman soil, a fine, montmorillonitic, thermic vertic medium-acidic Hapludalf. This distinctive pale soil is silt loam in the A horizon, but the AB horizon is a clay loam and the B+ horizon is clay.

Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: This mixed pine vegetation is variable in composition depending on fire history and management; it was formerly placed in forest. Examples are known from the Homochitto National Forest, where management to favor Picoides borealis has promoted the dominance and reproductive success of Pinus palustris in some stands. The more "natural" condition may be a mixture of Pinus palustris and Pinus echinata, with the presence of Pinus taeda being a result of its encroachment from nearby plantings with subsequent fire suppression. The relative dominance of oaks and other hardwoods in the understory is being reduced through management; this will result in highly managed or recently burned stands having reduced canopy closure. With lack of fire management, stands could revert to vegetation dominated by Pinus taeda and Quercus falcata, with more dense and shrub-dominated understories.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available

note: No Data Available