The Forest Vegetation of the Driftless Area, Northeast Iowa

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Abstract
The upland forest vegetation of the Driftless Area, northeastern Iowa [USA], is composed of 5 dominance types: Acer, Tilia, Quercus rubra, Q. alba and Pinus. The interaction of moisture gradients and succession primarily determine the distribution of the dominance types. The Acer and Tilia types are found in the most mesic and oldest sites. The Q. rubra and Q. alba types occupy the mesic and drier sites, respectively, that are successionally young. Pinus stands occupy the driest sites except that crags and bluffs have Juniperus virginiana or Q. muehlenbergii on them. The basic vegetation pattern emerges from several different ordination methods, and this concordance enhances the observed correlation between the vegetation coenocline and a complex gradient of topographic moisture and succession.