Sandy Lowland Flats

Description

Mesic flatwoods are flatland with sand substrate; mesic; frequent fire (2-4 years); open pine canopy with a layer of low shrubs and herbs; longleaf pine and/or slash pine, saw palmetto, gallberry, dwarf live oak, wiregrass. (FNAI, 2010).

Mesic flatwoods is characterized by an open canopy of tall pines and a dense, low ground layer of low shrubs, grasses, and forbs. Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) is the principal canopy tree in northern and Central Florida. Although slash pine (Pinus elliottii) is currently more common than longleaf pine in mesic flatwoods in northern Florida, this a result of invasion by, or planting of, slash pine after logging of longleaf pine followed by a long period of fire exclusion in the early part of the twentieth century. (FNAI, 2010).

Wet flatwoods are flatland with sand substrate; seasonally inundated; frequent fire (2-4 years for grassy wet flatwoods, 5-10 years for shrubby wet flatwoods); closed to open pine canopy with grassy or shrubby understory; slash pine, pond pine, large gallberry, fetterbush, sweetbay, cabbage palm, wiregrass, toothache grass. (FNAI, 2010).

Wet flatwoods are pine forests with a sparse or absent midstory and a dense groundcover of hydrophytic grasses, herbs, and low shrubs. The pine canopy typically consists of one or a combination of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), slash pine (P. elliottii), or pond pine (P. serotina). The subcanopy, if present, consists of scattered sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), swamp bay (Persea palustris), loblolly bay (Gordonia lasianthus), pond cypress (Taxodium ascendens), dahoon (Ilex cassine), titi (Cyrilla racemiflora), and/or wax myrtle (Myrica cerifera). Shrubs include large gallberry (Ilex coriacea), fetterbush (Lyonia lucida), titi, black titi (Cliftonia monophylla), sweet pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia), red chokeberry (Photinia pyrifolia), and azaleas (Rhododendron canescens, R. viscosum). Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens) and gallberry (I. glabra), species also found in mesic flatwoods sites, may be present. (FNAI, 2010).

Dominant plant species

1. longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), tree

2. slash pine (Pinus elliottii), tree

Submodel

Description

Managed grassland represents both improved and unimproved pasture including wooded pasture.

Submodel

Description

Pine plantations in Florida are often dominated by evenaged loblolly, sand, or slash pine (Pinus taeda, P. clausa, or P. elliottii, respectively). Dense pine plantations typically have sparse to absent herbaceous vegetation as a result of shading or a cover of deep pine needle duff. These plantations may be very shrubby or vine-dominated or open at ground level. The groundcover in most cases has been severely impacted by mechanical site preparation, such as roller chopping and bedding. However, while perennial grasses such as wiregrass (Aristida stricta var. beyrichiana) may be greatly reduced, many components of the native groundcover persist even though the relative abundance is altered. Groundcover can be partially restored by thinning and/or frequent burning, although some planting of perennial grasses such as wiregrass may be required. (FNAI, 2010)

Dominant plant species

1. loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), tree

2. slash pine (Pinus elliottii), tree

3. sand pine (Pinus clausa), tree

Submodel

Description

The degraded State represents vegetation conditions that have been degraded by the introduction and spread of non-native species.

Submodel