Publication Date:
2014-06-01
Description:
Leucothoe davisiae Torr. ex A. Gray (Ericaceae), Sierra laurel, is an endemic shrub of the Sierra Nevada, Klamath Mountains, and Warner Mountains. We compared the woody plant community and allometry of Leucothoe with one widespread wetland shrub, red osier dogwood (Cornus sericea L. (Cornaceae)), and one widespread upland shrub, bush chinquapin (Chrysolepis sempervirens (Kellogg) Hjelmq. (Fagaceae)), in an Abies concolor – Pinus lambertiana forest. We examined 2282 mapped shrub patches and 34 392 trees in the Yosemite Forest Dynamics Plot (25.6 ha), Yosemite National Park, California, USA. We dissected 40–41 stems of each shrub species and determined foliage, bark, wood, and total biomass as a function of stem diameter. Community compositions determined from plants within a 5 m buffer of Leucothoe were different from those reported for Leucothoe communities in the Siskiyou National Forest and the Central Klamath. Leucothoe allometry based on basal diameter was more variable (total biomass R2 = 0.64; P 〈 0.001) than that of Cornus (R2 = 0.93; P 〈 0.001) or Chrysolepis (R2 = 0.95; P 〈 0.001), reflecting greater canopy variation. Allometry based on diameter at 1.37 m along the main stem offered equivalent explanatory power for Cornus (R2 = 0.89; P 〈 0.001) and Chrysolepis (R2 = 0.84; P 〈 0.001), but Leucothoe rarely reached that stature. These allometric equations that we report can improve species-specific modeling of carbon dynamics, fuel loading, and fire behavior.
Print ISSN:
0045-5067
Electronic ISSN:
1208-6037
Topics:
Agriculture, Forestry, Horticulture, Fishery, Domestic Science, Nutrition
Permalink
