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Table 3 Average understorya density, basal area, and diversity based on density (H’density) and basal area (H’basal area) and species richness (S) before the prescribed burn (1994), and the first (1995), second (1996), and tenth (2005) growing seasons after the prescribed burn for the three communities (ridge, mid-slope, and riparian) at Wine Spring Creek, western North Carolina.

From: Long-Term Effects of High Intensity Prescribed Fire on Vegetation Dynamics in the Wine Spring Creek Watershed, Western North Carolina, USA

 

Pre-burn

1 yr post-burn

2 yr post-burn

10 yr post-burn

Ridge (n = 13)

    

Density (stems ha−1)

    

Total

13 391 (3 208) Ac

482 (199) B

7 798 (2 149) AB

30 919 (4 443) C

K. latifolia

9 774 (2 978) A

267 (176) B

181 (170) B

19 808 (4 834) C

Tree species

3 446 (705) AB

215 (100) A

7 275 (2 216) B

7 692 (1 292) B

Shrub speciesb

9 945 (2 958) A

266 (176) A

523 (368) A

23 227 (4 449) B

Basal area (m2 ha−1)

7.53 (2.21) A

0.40 (0.21) B

1.56 (0.48) B

10.58 (1.20) A

Diversity

    

Plot H’density

1.03 (0.15) A

0.49 (0.24) B

0.72 (0.17) A

0.89 (0.14) A

Plot H’basal area

0.78 (0.12) A

0.64 (0.27) A

0.66 (0.15) A

0.95 (0.14) A

S / plotd

5.0 (0.6) A

3.6 (0.4) B

4.8 (0.5) A

4.7 (0.4) A

Mid-slope (n = 6)

    

Density (stems ha−1)

    

Total

10 638 (3 784) A

1 783 (1 042) B

2 675 (930) B

14 476 (6 219) A

K. latifolia

7037 (2878) A

185 (185) B

370 (234) B

7 911 (3 558) A

Tree species

1 851 (892) A

741 (549) A

1 481 (794) A

5 185 (2 907) A

Shrub speciesb

8 787 (3 029) A

1 042 (1 042) A

1 194 (782) A

9 291 (4 026) A

Basal area (m2 ha−1)

10.85 (4.26) A

2.52 (0.74) A

2.88 (2.00) A

5.00 (1.88) A

Diversity

    

Plot H’density

0.78 (0.11) A

0.16 (0.10) A

0.33 (0.14) A

0.70 (0.19) A

Plot H’basal area

0.56 (0.05) A

0.19 (0.15) A

0.32 (0.14) A

0.72 (0.19) A

S / plotd

4.0 (0.7) A

3.8 (0.3) A

3.7 (0.3) A

4.2 (0.3) A

Riparian (n = 6)

    

Density (stems ha−1)

    

Total

1 481 (1 481) A

2 407 (926) A

3 148 (1 446) A

2490 (446) A

Tree species

0

1 333 (648) A

1 778 (566) A

1 778 (444) A

Shrub speciesb

1 481 (1 481) A

1 296 (727) A

1 667 (1 667) A

1 009 (499) A

Basal area (m2 ha−1)

0.56 (0.70) A

0.66 (0.40) A

1.46 (0.75) A

0.62 (0.32) A

Diversity

    

Plot H’density

0.38 (0.08) A

0.66 (0.25) A

0.60 (0.18) A

0.57 (0.20) A

Plot H’basal area

0.40 (0.08) A

0.64 (0.23) A

0.46 (0.19) A

0.34 (0.14) A

S / plotd

1.2 (0.2) A

2.3 (0.4) A

2.7 (0.3) A

2.5 (0.4) A

  1. aUnderstory woody stems are < 5.0 cm dbh, ≥ 1.0 cm basal diameter.
  2. bShrub species included: Crataegus sp., Gaylussacia baccata, Kalmia latifolia, Lyonia ligustrina, Pyrularia pubera, Rubus sp., Smilax spp, Rhododendron calendulaceum, Rhododendron maximum, Rhus copallina, Vaccinium corymbosum, V. vacillans, and V. stamineum. Species nomenclature and authorities follow Gleason and Cronquist 1991.
  3. cValues in rows followed by different letters are significantly different (p < 0.05) based on repeated measures analysis of variance, followed by a Tukey-Kramer adjusted t-test.
  4. dSpecies richness was calculated as average number of species per plot. Standard errors are in parentheses.