New Zealand Journal of Botany abstracts

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Plant communities, landforms, and soils of a geomorphically active drainage basin, Southern Alps, New Zealand

G. H. STEWART
J. B. J. HARRISON*

Forestry Research Centre, Forest Research Institute
P.O. Box 31-011, Christchurch, New Zealand

Abstract The plant communities in a moun- tainous drainage basin in the Southern Alps, West- land, New Zealand, were classified from 92 vegetation descriptions. Nine forest and shrubland communities were denned from the presence/abs- ence of 264 species and from differences in canopy cover. Their composition and distribution, inferred from ordination and descriptions of landforms and soils, were determined primarily by the influences of mass movement disturbance and elevation. Erosional and depositional landform units of vary- ing age and surface stability contained soils of dif- ferent stages of development. Serai communities occupied well-drained and often frequently dis- turbed recent soils. Mature forest/shrubland dom- inated stable landforms characterised by yellow- brown earths or gley podzol soils. Although specific relationships of individual species with factors such as soil nutrient status are consistent with other studies in Westland, landform age and surface sta- bility, soil depth, soil drainage, and other physical disturbances, such as treefalls, appear to be equally critical determinants.

Keywords forest communities; landforms; soils; floristics; ordination; mass movements; soil development

Received 3 July 1986; accepted 6 October 1986
New Zealand Journal of Botany, 1987, Vol. 25 : 385-399
0028-825X/87/2503-0385$2.50/0 © Crown copyright 1987

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (1388K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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