United States Department Forested Communities of the Upper of Agriculture Forest Service Montane in the Central and Southern Pacific Southwest Sierra Nevada Research Station Donald A. Potter General Technical Report PSW-GTR-169 Publisher: Pacific Southwest Research Station Albany, California Forest Service Mailing address: U.S. Department of Agriculture PO Box 245, Berkeley CA 94701-0245 Abstract (510) 559-6300 Potter, Donald A. 1998. Forested communities of the upper montane in the central and southern http://www.psw.fs.fed.us Sierra Nevada. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-169. Albany, CA: Pacific Southwest Research Station, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; 319 p. September 1998 Upper montane forests in the central and southern Sierra Nevada of California were classified into 26 plant associations by using information collected from 0.1-acre circular plots. Within this region, the forested environment including the physiographic setting, geology, soils, and vegetation is described in detail. A simulation model is presented for this portion of the Sierra Nevada that refines discussions of climate, and disturbance regimes are described to illustrate the interaction between these features of the environment and vegetation in the study area. In the classification, plant associations are differentiated by floristic composition, environmental setting, and measurements of productivity. Differences in elevation, aspect, topographic setting, and soil properties generally distinguish each plant association described. A detailed description is presented for each plant association, including a discussion of the distribution, environment, vegetation, soils, productivity, coarse woody debris, range, wildlife, and management recommendations. A complete species list and tables for cross referencing specific characteristics of each association are provided. Retrieval Terms: Vegetation classification, ecological classification, potential natural vegetation, plant association, red fir (Abies magnifica), white fir (Abies concolor), sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana), Jeffrey pine (Pinus Jeffreyii), lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta), mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), western white pine (Pinus monticola), western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis), quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides). Useful English/metric conversions for this classification are: 1 inch = 2.54 centimeters 1 centimeter = 0.39 inch 1 foot = 0.30 meters 1 meter = 3.28 feet 1 square foot = 0.09 square meters 1 square meter = 10.76 square feet 1 cubic foot = 0.03 cubic meters 1 cubic meter = 35.31 cubic feet 1 acre = 0.41 hectares 1 hectare = 2.47 acres The Author Donald A. Potter is Province Ecologist for the Sequoia, Sierra, and Stanislaus National Forests, Pacific Southwest Region, USDA Forest Service. He is located on the Stanislaus National Forest, 19777 Greenley Road, Sonora, California 95370. Acknowledgments No work of this size and scope could have been completed without the assistance of many people. Specialists in ecology, botany, genetics, silviculture, soil science, geology, hydrology, wildlife biology, range conservation, and fuels management enthusiastically offered their observations, insights, and advice from the field. It was a genuine pleasure to work with and learn from all of them. A collective round of thanks is truly offered to all. I would also like to thank Michael Barbour, Edward Stone, and Alan Taylor for reviewing the manuscript, and special thanks go to the following for their exemplary and dedicated efforts in the field and office: Botanists—John Rivera, Kathy Burnett, Susan Urie, and Tom Beck; Soil Scientists—Ben Smith, Alex Janicki, Randy Westmoreland, Ken Roberts, Calvin Pratt, Elise Pendall, and Wayne Verrill; Field Technicians—Wyrita Myster, and Charles Whitehead; Data Entry and Office Support—Thelma Joslin. Final drafts of the manuscript were edited by Laurie J. Dunn, and the layout produced by Kathy Stewart, both of the Pacific Southwest Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Albany, California. Forested Communities of the Upper Montane in the Central and Southern Sierra Nevada Donald A. Potter Contents: Introduction . 1 Pacific Southwest Study Area . 1 Research Station Classification Concepts . 3 Potential Natural Community. 3 USDA Forest Service Evolutionary Perspective . 4 General Technical Classification Hierarchy . 5 Report The Forest Environment . 5 PSW-GTR-169 Physiographic Setting . 5 Climate . 7 September 1998 Geology . 12 Soils . 15 Vegetation . 20 Disturbance Elements . 23 Methods . 40 Sampling . 40 Data Analysis . 42 Procedures . 43 Results . 46 General Relationships . 46 North-South Relationships . 47 East-West Relationships . 48 Ordination of Trees and Shrubs . 49 Using the Classification . 52 Use of the Key . 54 Key to Plant Associations . 56 Association Descriptions . 59 Bolander’s Locoweed . 59 Quaking Aspen/Mountain Pennyroyal . 65 Quaking Aspen/California Corn Lily. 73 Western Juniper/Sagebrush . 81 Western Juniper . 89 Red Fir/Mountain Mule Ears . 97 Mountain Hemlock//Steep . 105 Mountain Hemlock . 113 Red Fir-Western White Pine/Pinemat Manzanita . 121 Red Fir-Western White Pine/Sierra Chinquapin . 129 Red Fir-Western White Pine-Lodgepole Pine . 137 Red Fir-Western White Pine . 145 White Fir-Sugar Pine-Red Fir . 153 Jeffrey Pine/Huckleberry Oak . 161 Jeffrey Pine/Greenleaf Manzanita-Snowbrush . 169 Jeffrey Pine/Mountain Whitethorn-Sagebrush . 177 Red Fir-White Fir-Jeffrey Pine . 185 Jeffrey Pine-Red Fir . 193 Lodgepole Pine/Sagebrush . 201 Lodgepole Pine/Gray’s Lovage . 209 Lodgepole Pine//Woodlands . 217 Lodgepole Pine . 225 Red Fir-Lodgepole Pine/White Flowered Hawkweed . 233 Red Fir-White Fir . 241 Red Fir/Pinemat Manzanita . 249 Red Fir. 257 Appendices A-Classification Hierarchy of Plant Associations . 265 B-Soil Taxonomy by Plant Association. 268 C-Variables Used in the Classification . 272 D-Autecological Relationships of Selected Plants . 274 E-Environmental Summary by Plant Association . 289 F-Vegetation Summary by Plant Association . 290 G-Soil Summary by Plant Association . 291 H-Productivity Summary by Plant Association. 292 I-Common Plants of the Upper Montane . 293 Glossary . 307 Bibliography. 311 ii USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-169. 1998. The Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, is responsible for Federal Leadership in forestry. It carries out this role through four main activities: • Protection and management of resources on 191 million acres of National Forest System lands • Cooperation with State and local governments, forest industries, and private landowners to help protect and manage non-Federal forest and associated range and watershed lands • Participation with other agencies in human resource and community assistance programs to improve living conditions in rural areas • Research on all aspects of forestry, rangeland management, and forest.