• This association includes forests dominated by Tsuga canadensis and Halesia tetraptera var. monticola, occurring in restricted montane areas of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. This forest is found on protected, lower slopes and coves at elevations of 2,800-4,600 feet.
  • This community is distinguished from ~Liriodendron tulipifera - Betula lenta - Tsuga canadensis / Rhododendron maximum Forest (CEGL007543) by not having Liriodendron tulipifera as an important component and by generally occurring at higher elevations (over 3,000 feet).
  • This community is distinguished from ~Betula alleghaniensis - (Tsuga canadensis) / Rhododendron maximum / Leucothoe fontanesiana Forest (CEGL007861) by occurring on more protected sites and having more diverse tree and herb strata.
    
    
• The most important canopy trees are Tsuga canadensis and Halesia tetraptera var. monticola, although Magnolia fraseri or Fagus grandifolia can have high canopy coverage in some examples.
  
  
• Some occurrences have dense, tall-shrub strata dominated by Rhododendron maximum.
• Other subcanopy/shrub species may include Acer pensylvanicum, Acer saccharum, Acer rubrum, Amelanchier laevis, Betula alleghaniensis, Betula lenta, and Prunus pensylvanica.
  
  
• Other occurrences have a more open shrub stratum with greater herbaceous cover, often dominated by Dryopteris intermedia.
  • Other common herbaceous species include Mitchella repens, Medeola virginiana, Polystichum acrostichoides, Solidago curtisi, Viola blanda, and Viola hastata. Rubus canadensis is also common.

• This forest has a canopy dominated by Tsuga canadensis and Halesia tetraptera var. monticola.
  • Other species that can have high coverage in the canopy or subcanopy include Acer saccharum, Fagus grandifolia, Magnolia fraseri, Betula alleghaniensis, and Acer rubrum. Prunus serotina can also be present in the subcanopy.
    
    
• Some occurrences have dense tall-shrub strata dominated by Rhododendron maximum, but more typically the shrub stratum is open, with coverage by saplings of the canopy species.
  • Acer pensylvanicum is also a typical shrub.
    
    
• The herb stratum has sparse to moderate coverage.
  • Common species include Eurybia divaricata, Dryopteris intermedia, Huperzia lucidula, Medeola virginiana, Mitchella repens, Oxalis montana, Solidago curtisi, Tiarella cordifolia, and Viola spp. (e.g., Viola blanda, Viola canadensis, Viola hastata, Viola rotundifolia).

• This association occurs in restricted montane areas of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee.

• This community was sampled from the Cades Cove quadrangle, Mount Le Conte quadrangle, and Mount Guyot quadrangle.
  • Historic samples come from the Thunderhead Mountain quadrangle (3,420-4,600 feet elevation).
    
    
• Samples of this community from the Cades Cove quadrangle ranged in elevation from 2,720-3,900 feet.
  • Recent and historic samples from the Cades Cove quadrangle come from low slopes above the Left Prong of Anthony Creek; from protected slopes and coves north of McCampbell Knob; and in the vicinity of Forge Creek.
    
    
• Samples from the Mount Le Conte quadrangle ranged from 2,602-4,120 feet elevation and included samples from the western portion of the quadrangle near the Cherokee Orchard-Rainbow Falls trailhead and from coves east of Piney Mountain above Rocky Spur Branch.
  • In the eastern portion of the Mount Le Conte quadrangle this community was sampled from low slopes above Horseshoe Branch and from Upper Porter's Creek on the far southwestern part of Mount Guyot quadrangle.

• Global Conservation Status Rank: G2 (Last reviewed: 09 29 2004).
  
  
• This community is uncommon and geographically restricted to the Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee, and to Joyce Kilmer Wilderness in western North Carolina.
  • Occurrences are subject to compositional modification by outbreaks of hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae), an exotic insect pest that causes decline and eventual mortality of Tsuga canadensis.

Golden, M. S. 1974. Forest vegetation and site relationships in the central portion of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. 275 pp.

Newell, C. L., R. K. Peet, and J. C. Harrod. 1997. Vegetation of Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness, North Carolina. Unpublished report to USDA Forest Service. University of North Carolina, Curriculum in Ecology & Department of Biology, Chapel Hill, NC. 282 pp. plus maps.

Peet, R. K., T. R. Wentworth, M. P. Schafale, and A.S. Weakley. 2002. Unpublished data of the North Carolina Vegetation Survey. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Schafale, M. 1998b. Fourth approximation guide. High mountain communities. March 1998 draft. North Carolina Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.

Schafale, M. P., and A. S. Weakley. 1990. Classification of the natural communities of North Carolina. Third approximation. North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh. 325 pp.

Schafale, Mike P. Personal communication. Ecologist, North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation, Natural Heritage Program, Raleigh.

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