Successional Tree-of-Heaven Forest - Ecological Community of Great Smoky Mountains National Park

NatureServe Unique Identifier: CEGL007191: Ailanthus altissima Forest

Park Vegetation Plot Summary

Tree Canopy: Ailanthus altissima

Tree subcanopy: N/A

Tall Shrubs and Saplings: N/A

Short Shrubs and Saplings: N/A

Herbs (field): N/A

Nonvascular: N/A

GLOBAL COMMUNITY CONCEPT

Forests dominated by the alien Ailanthus altissima.
- These forests occur on rich substrates, in disturbed situations on slopes, urban abandoned lands, and on rocky limestone slopes.

PARK VEGETATION PLOT SUMMARY

N/A

DISTRIBUTION

North America:

Ailanthus altissima Forest occurs throughout the Appalachians, the Piedmont, the Interior Low Plateau, eastern Kentucky, and in the Ozarks and Ouachita Mountains, and probably other areas in the northeastern United States.

Click map to enlarge.
Potential	Occurs

Click map to view North American distribution.

In the Park:

This association was not observed or sampled on the Mount Le Conte quadrangle or Cades Cove quadrangle.
- However, it occurs in the western portion of the southern Blue Ridge and is thus possible within the park boundary.

CONSERVATION STATUS

Global Status:

Global Conservation Status Rank: GNA (invasive) (Last reviewed: 2000/01/04).
This vegetation is dominated by an invasive, alien species and is thus not a conservation priority.

Park Status:

Picking, digging, or otherwise damaging plants is prohibited in the Park. Collection is allowed only by special permit for research or educational purposes.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Field Work:

NatureServe

Supporting Institutions:

N/A

Forest Association Described By:

K.D. Patterson

Web Page:

Charles Wilder.

Photographs:

NatureServe

Maps:

Charles Wilder.

REFERENCES

Patterson, D. T. 1976. The history and distribution of five exotic weeds in North Carolina (Ailanthus altissima, Lonicera japonica, Polygonum cuspidatum, Pueraria lobata, Rosa multiflora). Castanea 41:177-180.

Southeastern Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Durham, NC.