These communities are rare in the Piedmont because of the limited extent of basic rocks, but when they occur, particularly on steep slopes, they are often preserved and provide the habitat for rare or disjunct species. Soil series include Tatum and Wilkes . Because the overall moisture level is not easy to determine, upland hardwood forests are most easily distinguished by the canopy composition. Shrubs may include Virbunum spp. Under natural conditions these forests are uneven-aged, with old trees present.
Reproduction occurs primarily in canopy gaps.
Severe natural disturbances may allow pulses of increased regeneration. Basic Mesic Forests, with a higher pH, show more diversity in the herbaceous species present, compared to the Mesic Mixed Hardwood Forest . Some of these from the above description, which serve as an indicator of the basic substrate, include Hybanus concolor, Delphinium tricorne, Trillium cuneatum, Asimina triloba, Lindera benzoin, Staphylea trifolia and Corydalis flavula. The bird and mammal species assemblages are essentially the same as those in the Oak-Hickory Forests . All rights reserved.