Ecological site F128XY515WV

Tree	(1) Quercus rubra (2) Quercus montana
Shrub	(1) Oxydendrum arboreum
Herbaceous	Not specified

Landforms	(1) Hill (2) Interfluve (3) Ridge
Elevation	1000 – 4320 ft
Slope	3 – 80 %
Water table depth	60 in
Aspect	N, S

Frost-free period (average)	150 days
Freeze-free period (average)	180 days
Precipitation total (average)	40 in

Parent material	(1) Residuum – sandstone
Surface texture	(1) Channery fine sandy loam (2) Cobbly loam (3) Extremely gravelly loamy sand
Drainage class	Well drained to excessively drained
Permeability class	Rapid
Soil depth	16 – 59 in
Surface fragment cover <=3"	0 – 35 %
Surface fragment cover >3"	0 – 35 %
Available water capacity (0-40in)	0.9 – 6.1 in
Soil reaction (1:1 water) (0-40in)	4.2 – 5.4
Subsurface fragment volume <=3" (Depth not specified)	0 – 70 %
Subsurface fragment volume >3" (Depth not specified)	0 – 80 %

Ecological dynamics

The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program (DCR-DNH) has classified two communities on Lily loam mapunits: Northern Hardwood Forest and Montane Mixed Oak / Oak - Hickory Forest. It is unclear which one is the most prevalent without field investigation but Montane Mixed Oak and Oak-Hickory Forest is most likely based on soil and site characteristics. Following is the DCR-DNH (partial) description of those systems:

Northern Hardwood Forests are dominated by sugar maple, black cherry (Prunus serotina var. serotina), yellow birch, northern red oak (Quercus rubra), red maple (Acer rubrum), and sweet birch (Betula lenta var. lenta), while American beech, and eastern hemlock are less frequent co-dominants. Overstory composition varies occasionally to nearly pure sugar maple. Striped maple, mountain maple, and mountain holly (Ilex montana) are the chief understory species, along with sapling sugar maple and beech. The herb layers of many stands are characterized by patch-dominance of hayscented fern (Dennstaedtia punctilobula). Other more or less characteristic herbaceous species include whorled wood aster (Oclemena acuminata, = Aster acuminatus), evergreen wood fern (Dryopteris intermedia), prickly tree-clubmoss (Dendrolycopodium dendroideum, stiff clubmoss (Spinulum annotinum), tall millet grass (Milium effusum var. cisatlanticum), grove bluegrass (Poa alsodes), northern shorthusk (Brachyelytrum aristosum), purple oat grass (Schizachne purpurascens), sedges (particularly Carex appalachica, Carex flexuosa, Carex digitalis, Carex leptonervia, and Carex woodii), eastern rose mandarin (Streptopus lanceolatus), and sweet white violet. The importance of red maple, sweet birch, northern red oak, and black cherry in contemporary Central Appalachian examples of this community group reflects secondary succession following catastrophic logging and fire disturbances in the early part of the twentieth century. Sugar maple and beech, both abundant in understory layers and locally co-dominant in the overstory, appear positioned to assume dominance as current secondary stands mature. However, beech-bark disease and excessive deer browsing are serious threats to the future viability of the largest stands on Allegheny Mountain.

Overstory composition (of Montane Mixed Oak and Oak-Hickory Forests) contains mixtures of chestnut oak (Quercus montana), northern red oak (Quercus rubra), and white oak (Quercus alba). Overstory associates vary with geography and site conditions, but often include sweet birch (Betula lenta var. lenta), magnolias (Magnolia acuminata and Magnolia fraseri), sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum), hickories (Carya spp.), red maple (Acer rubrum), tulip-tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), and white pine (Pinus strobus). The understories of mixed oak communities usually contain a substantial component of heaths, but also contain many non-ericaceous species such as witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana var. virginiana), striped maple (Acer pensylvanicum), maple-leaved viburnum (Viburnum acerifolium), mountain holly (Ilex montana), buffalo-nut (Pyrularia pubera), and hazelnuts (Corylus cornuta var. cornuta and Corylus americana). The herbaceous component is relatively diverse, but often patchy and composed of both acidophiles and species characteristic of moderately fertile soils, including New York fern (Parathelypteris noveboracensis), galax (Galax urceolata), Curtis' goldenrod (Solidago curtisii), white wood aster (Eurybia divaricata), indian cucumber-root (Medeola virginiana), squawroot (Conopholis americana), halberd-leaved yellow violet (Viola hastata), speckled wood lily (Clintonia umbellulata), devil's-bit (Chamaelirium luteum), mountain golden-alexanders (Zizia trifoliata), and American lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria pseudomajalis).

Reference: http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/natural-communities/nctiiid

State and transition model

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State 1
Upland Forest State

Mature stands include a mixture of deciduous tree species. In some cases, pockets of shortleaf pine, Virginia pine and white pine may be present. Forestry is an important land-use on this site. On-site determinations are needed to classify the reference conditions on this site.

State 2
Managed Agricultural State

Managed pasture for a variety of livestock is a typical land-use on this site. Other land-uses include corn, wheat, oats, barley, Christmas trees and hay.

State 3
Post Agricultural Abandonment Forest State

This state results when land has been put in crops or pasture and abandoned. Pine and weedy species usually colonize. Depending on the rate and intensity of invasion, it may naturally return to an upland forest or it might need management.

Community 3.1
Pine species - invasive plants/poison ivy

Transition T1A
State 1 to 2

Forest clearing, conversion to agricultural land-use. Practices are dependent on the management goals.

Transition T2A
State 2 to 3

Abandonment of agricultural land-use.

Restoration pathway R3A
State 3 to 1

Invasive plant control if needed, natural succession, tree planting if desired/needed.

Restoration pathway R3B
State 3 to 2

Re-establishment/implementation of agricultural practices. Control of weedy, invasive species where necessary.

Additional community tables

Table 5. Community 3.1 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Rangeland health reference sheet

Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health is a qualitative assessment protocol used to determine ecosystem condition based on benchmark characteristics described in the Reference Sheet. A suite of 17 (or more) indicators are typically considered in an assessment. The ecological site(s) representative of an assessment location must be known prior to applying the protocol and must be verified based on soils and climate. Current plant community cannot be used to identify the ecological site.

Author(s)/participant(s)
Contact for lead author
Date	05/11/2026
Approved by
Approval date
Composition (Indicators 10 and 12) based on	Annual Production

Indicators

Number and extent of rills:
Presence of water flow patterns:
Number and height of erosional pedestals or terracettes:
Bare ground from Ecological Site Description or other studies (rock, litter, lichen, moss, plant canopy are not bare ground):
Number of gullies and erosion associated with gullies:
Extent of wind scoured, blowouts and/or depositional areas:
Amount of litter movement (describe size and distance expected to travel):
Soil surface (top few mm) resistance to erosion (stability values are averages - most sites will show a range of values):
Soil surface structure and SOM content (include type of structure and A-horizon color and thickness):
Effect of community phase composition (relative proportion of different functional groups) and spatial distribution on infiltration and runoff:
Presence and thickness of compaction layer (usually none; describe soil profile features which may be mistaken for compaction on this site):
Functional/Structural Groups (list in order of descending dominance by above-ground annual-production or live foliar cover using symbols: >>, >, = to indicate much greater than, greater than, and equal to):

Dominant:

Sub-dominant:

Other:

Additional:
Amount of plant mortality and decadence (include which functional groups are expected to show mortality or decadence):
Average percent litter cover (%) and depth ( in):
Expected annual annual-production (this is TOTAL above-ground annual-production, not just forage annual-production):
Potential invasive (including noxious) species (native and non-native). List species which BOTH characterize degraded states and have the potential to become a dominant or co-dominant species on the ecological site if their future establishment and growth is not actively controlled by management interventions. Species that become dominant for only one to several years (e.g., short-term response to drought or wildfire) are not invasive plants. Note that unlike other indicators, we are describing what is NOT expected in the reference state for the ecological site:
Perennial plant reproductive capability:

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Natural ResourcesConservation Service

Ecological site F128XY515WV

Mesic Sandstone Residuum

Last updated: 5/14/2025 Accessed: 05/11/2026

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General information

MLRA notes

Ecological site concept

Table 1. Dominant plant species

Natural Resources
Conservation Service

Last updated: 5/14/2025
Accessed: 05/11/2026