The Vascular Flora of New River Gorge, West Virginia

Grafton, William; Mcgraw, Claude

The New River Gorge serves as a migratory route through which plants move into West Virginia from coastal areas. The C & O Railroad which parallels the river also serves as a vehicle for the importation of weedy species. In addition, the gorge has a unique topography with steep walls cut by deep ravines which are unusually cool as compared with the ad-jacent slopes. These characters have led to the growth of one of the most unique floras in the eastern United States including northern, high altitude plants and southern, Atlantic Coastal Plain species. A three year survey of the vascular plants of this area resulted in the collection of 1067 species in 478 genera and 123 families. Eight of the species, Paspalum dilatatum Poir., Eragrostis wiegeltiana (Reichenb.) Bush., Commelina, diffusa Burm. f., Parietaria floridana Nutt., Rhexia mariana L., Chaerophyllum teinturieri Hook., Lysimachia vulgaris L., and Eupatorium hyssopifolium L., are new state records. A complete suite of specimens has been deposited in the West Virginia University herbarium in Morgantown.