CHARACTERIZATION OF THE VEGETATION AND SOIL OF THE FOREST COMMUNITIES AT CAMP BROOKSIDE IN SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA

Mitchem, David

Camp Brookside, a seasonal island, is located on the floodplain of the New Riverin Summers County, West Virginia. This island hosts several rare plant species and arare plant community known as a riverside flat rock plant community (FRPC). The FRPCis characterized by flat resistant sandstone shelves above water that are generallyassociated with rapids. Flooding has historically maintained the FRPC by scouring anysoil off of the bedrock and leaving sand deposits in cracks or depressions. However,since the Bluestone Dam was built in 1950, organic material accumulation and soildevelopment has gone unabated. Measurements were taken of the overstory, lowercanopy, regeneration layers, and soils found at Camp Brookside. Our overstory dataindicated that there are five distinct plant communities on the island. The FRPC has anoverstory of eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana),and white ash (Fraxinus americana). The FRPC has an average soil depth of 1.8 cm, aloamy sand soil texture, and a soil pH of 3.9. A xeric pine community dominated byVirginia pine and eastern redcedar was found along the riverside portion of the island.Historically, this community was part of the FRPC. The xeric pine community has anaverage soil depth of 17.6 cm, a loamy sand soil texture, and a soil pH of 4.6. Our resultsindicate that soil and organic material is accumulating in the FRPC, and that some type ofdisturbance will be needed to maintain this community.