Print Report

A3815 Calamagrostis canadensis - Calamagrostis stricta - Poa palustris Wet Meadow Alliance

Type Concept Sentence: This alliance consists of mesic to wet grasslands dominated by Calamagrostis canadensis, Calamagrostis stricta, or Poa palustris and is found at montane elevations of the western U.S. and Canada, on seasonally saturated or flooded floodplains of small streams, beaver meadows, and lakeshores.

Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Bluejoint - Slimstem Reedgrass- Fowl Bluegrass Wet Meadow Alliance

Colloquial Name: Bluejoint - Slimstem Reedgrass - Bluegrass Wet Meadow

Hierarchy Level:  Alliance

Type Concept: This alliance consists of grasslands dominated by Calamagrostis canadensis, Calamagrostis stricta, or Poa palustris that can also have a variety of Carex species mixed in. Other graminoids that may be abundant in some stands include Deschampsia cespitosa, Elymus glaucus, Glyceria spp., Poa spp., and Scirpus microcarpus. Forb cover is typically minor, and woody species are uncommon. These grasslands have dense graminoid cover, are generally over 1 m tall, on sites that are either a flat or have tussock microtopography. Tall shrubs may occupy as much as 25% cover. The ground layer can be a heavy mat of grass stems and leaves, with patches of bare soil present in wetter locations. A dense root mat is typical in the upper layers of the soil. This alliance occurs on seasonally wet mineral soils found at montane elevations in the Pacific Northwest, Intermountain, Great Basin and Rocky Mountain states, as well as southern British Columbia and Alberta. Stands are found in floodplains of small streams, beaver meadows, and lakeshores. The hydrology is typically seasonally flooded or saturated.

Diagnostic Characteristics: Wet meadows dominated by Calamagrostis canadensis or Calamagrostis stricta within the montane elevations of the western U.S. and southwestern non-boreal Canada.

Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available

Classification Comments: More information is needed to describe the full range of variation of this type in the montane west.

Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: Stands of this alliance have a dense herbaceous graminoid cover, generally over a meter tall.

Floristics: This alliance consists of grasslands with dense graminoid cover, generally over 1 m tall. Calamagrostis canadensis, Calamagrostis stricta, or Poa palustris is the dominant species, in some stands forming a near monoculture. One or more of several Carex species can be present, including Carex aquatilis, Carex scopulorum, or Carex utriculata. Other graminoids that may be abundant in some stands include Deschampsia cespitosa, Elymus glaucus, Glyceria spp., Poa spp., and Scirpus microcarpus. Forb cover is typically minor, but may include Achillea millefolium, Asteraceae spp., Cardamine cordifolia, Epilobium spp., Heracleum maximum (= Heracleum lanatum), Ligusticum spp., Mertensia ciliata, Senecio triangularis, or Veronica spp. Woody species are uncommon, although species of Cornus sericea, Lonicera involucrata, Rubus idaeus, or Salix spp. may be present, and may occupy as much as 25% cover.

Dynamics:  Prescribed burning of stands of this alliance may increase the cover of Calamagrostis canadensis, an aggressive invader of burned sites, while reducing the abundance of other associated species. However, with repeated burning, the non-native, rhizomatous Poa pratensis may be favored. Burning should be postponed if livestock grazing is necessary in the area. This is because of the high palatability of young Calamagrostis canadensis shoots which revegetate burned sites (Hansen et al. 1995).

Calamagrostis canadensis meadows appear to be long-lived, mid-seral vegetation types. Increased available soil moisture after significant tree die-off allows for the expansion of Calamagrostis canadensis-dominated communities at the meadow/forest ecotone (Padgett et al. 1989).
Environmental Description:  Stands are found in wet meadows, basins, moist forest openings, broad glaciated valleys, floodplains of small streams, silted-in beaver ponds, on alluvial benches, terraces, or point bars, and on lake- or pondshores. Sites are typically low-gradient, with flat to gentle slopes. The elevational range is large, from near sea level to over 3500 m. The hydrology is typically seasonally flooded/saturated, and soils commonly remain moist throughout the growing season. Soil textures range from clay loam to sands, and sometimes are over subhorizons of coarse fragment-rich buried streambeds (Hansen et al. 1995, Crowe and Clausnitzer 1997). There is often an organic surface horizon but it is always less than 30-40 cm deep.
Geographic Range: This alliance is found in Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountain, Great Basin and Intermountain West states, as well as British Columbia and Alberta, Canada.

Nations: CA,US

States/Provinces:  AB, BC, CA, CO, ID, MT, ND, OR, SD, UT, WA, WY


Confidence Level: Low

Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: GNR

Greasons: No Data Available
Type Name Database Code Classification Code
Class 2 Shrub & Herb Vegetation Class C02 2
Subclass 2.C Shrub & Herb Wetland Subclass S44 2.C
Formation 2.C.4 Temperate to Polar Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Formation F013 2.C.4
Division 2.C.4.Nb Western North American Temperate Freshwater Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Division D031 2.C.4.Nb
Macrogroup 2.C.4.Nb.5 Sitka Alder - Booth''s Willow / Northwest Territory Sedge Montane Marsh, Wet Meadow & Shrubland Macrogroup M893 2.C.4.Nb.5
Group 2.C.4.Nb.5.b Sedge species - Reedgrass species Montane Wet Meadow & Marsh Group G521 2.C.4.Nb.5.b
Alliance A3815 Bluejoint - Slimstem Reedgrass- Fowl Bluegrass Wet Meadow Alliance A3815 2.C.4.Nb.5.b
Association CEGL001559 Bluejoint Western Wet Meadow CEGL001559 2.C.4.Nb.5.b
Association CEGL001560 Bluejoint - Mountain Sedge - Tall Fringed Bluebells Wet Meadow CEGL001560 2.C.4.Nb.5.b
Association CEGL002891 Slimstem Reedgrass Wet Meadow CEGL002891 2.C.4.Nb.5.b
Concept Lineage: A.2594 & A.1400, in part

Predecessors: No Data Available

Obsolete Names: No Data Available

Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: ? Calamagrostis canadensis (Bluejoint reed grass meadows) Alliance (Sawyer et al. 2009) [41.224.00]
= Calamagrostis canadensis Habitat Type (Hansen et al. 1995)
= Calamagrostis canadensis Series (Mattson 1984)
= Calamagrostis canadensis Series (Johnston 1987)
? Calamagrostis canadensis Herbaceous Alliance (CNPS 2017) [41.224.00]
>< Wet Meadows (Eggers and Reed 1987)
Concept Author(s): G. Kittel, in Faber-Langendoen et al. (2013)

Author of Description: G. Kittel

Acknowledgements: No Data Available

Version Date: 09-26-14
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