Quercus garryana communities in the Puget Trough, Washington

David R. Thysell; Andrew B. Carey

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Quercus garryana communities in the Puget Trough, Washington

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Quercus garryana communities in the Puget Trough, Washington

David R. Thysell and Andrew B. Carey

Northwest science., Vol.75(3), pp.219-235

2001

Handle:

https://hdl.handle.net/2376/938

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Abstract

coniferous forests

exotics

forests

mixed forests

natural regeneration

plant communities

plant succession

prairies

species diversity

species richness

stand characteristics

understorey

Forest Ecology

Grasslands

Synecology

Oak (Quercus garryana) communities at Fort Lewis, Washington, USA, were examined to assess encroachment by exotic plants and by Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), to determine the amounts of regeneration of oak and other tree species, and to compare oak community diversity with that of nearby Douglas fir forest and glacial till prairies. Tree densities, distributions of tree diameters and heights, amount of regeneration for each tree species, evidence of exogenous disturbances, and cover of vascular understorey species were determined for the 22 largest communities. Basal areas, species richness and diversity of vascular plants, and percentages of exotic species were calculated for the study sites. Results showed that oak communities were typically more diverse than either Douglas fir forests or prairies and were transitional in species composition between them. However, oak communities contained numerous exotics, particularly Scot's broom (Cystisus scoparius) and colonial bentgrass (Agrostis capillaris). Most oak communities contained large diameter Douglas firs and other tree species and appeared to be transforming to conifer or conifer/mixed hardwood forests. With succession, exotic species became less prevalent, but the extent and abundance of oaks is diminished.

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Title: Quercus garryana communities in the Puget Trough, Washington
Creators: David R. Thysell (Author)
Andrew B. Carey (Author)
Publication Details: Northwest science., Vol.75(3), pp.219-235
Academic Unit: Northwest Science
Publisher: WSU Press
Identifiers: 99900502482501842
Copyright: In copyright ; openAccess ; http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ ; http://purl.org/eprint/accessRights/OpenAccess
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article