THE INFLUENCE OF MOUNTAIN LAUREL ON REGENERATION IN PITCH PINE CANOPYGAPS OF THE COWEETA BASIN, NORTH-CAROLINA, USA

Because of its dense nature, mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia L.) und erstories may be retarding the regeneration of xeric pitch pine (Pinus rigida Mill.) sites in the southern Appalachians and thereby influenc ing successional dynamics. This study examined the impact of the laure l understory on hardwood successional ecology in living pitch pine sta nds and pine gaps at their upper and lower elevational distribution. T he laurel understory was physically removed from half the plots; the r emaining plots served as a control. The plots were inventoried and all seedlings were tagged and measured to determine importance values, re cruitment, survivorship, and biomass for 2 years following treatment. The results indicate that the presence or absence of the laurel unders tory does not affect initial seedling recruitment, survivorship, or th eir relative competitiveness. However, mountain laurel does suppress g rowth of smaller seedlings. Given the higher importance value, recruit ment, and survivorship of red maple (Acer rubrum L.), the regeneration layer in these pitch pine sites is currently dominated by red maple, with scarlet oak (Quercus coccinea Muenchh.) and other xeric-site hard woods as associates. With the adaptive ability of red maple to take ad vantage of openings, red maple will continue to dominate and ultimatel y regenerate these communities with other hardwoods as minor associate s.