Drilling the North Carolina Coastal Plain – Discovering What Lies Beneath

Water-quality and hydrologic information were collected along ground-water flow paths from two well-drained and two poorly drained Coastal Plain settings in North Carolina to evaluate the relative effectiveness of riparian buffers in reducing discharge of nitrate to streams. At one well-drained site with a 100 m buffer, little or no effect was detected on surface-water quality by discharging ground water because extensive woody vegetation in the buffer was able to take up not only most nitrate, but also most ground water before discharging to the stream during the growing season (March-October). At the second well-drained site, ground water discharging to the stream from the side with a buffer contained about 2 mg/L of nitrate-nitrogen after passing through the bed of the stream compared to 6 mg/L in ground water discharging from the side with no buffer. In the poorly drained settings, nitrate in ground water decreased from about 6 mg/L in the recharge area to less than 0.02 mg/L downgradient from the riparian buffer. Ground water discharging from the side with no buffer contained 0.83 mg/L. Riparian buffers appear effective in reducing nitrate in ground water discharging to Coastal Plain streams.

Download Full-text

Middle Eocene bentonite in the North Carolina Coastal Plain and its relationship to the volcanic swarm in western Virginia

The Appalachian Geology of John M. Dennison: Rocks, People, and a Few Good Restaurants along the Way ◽

10.1130/2020.2545(08) ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 151-160

Author(s):

W. Burleigh Harris ◽

Paul A. Thayer*

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Middle Eocene ◽

The North

Download Full-text

STRONTIUM RETENTION IN ACID SOILS OF THE NORTH CAROLINA COASTAL PLAIN

Soil Science ◽

10.1097/00010694-196812000-00006 ◽

1968 ◽

Vol 106 (6) ◽

pp. 440-447 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

ALAN W. TAYLOR

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Acid Soils ◽

The North

Download Full-text

Denitrification in Subsoils of the North Carolina Coastal Plain as Affected by Soil Drainage

Journal of Environmental Quality ◽

10.2134/jeq1975.00472425000400030005x ◽

1975 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 311-316 ◽

Cited By ~ 58

Author(s):

R. P. Gambrell ◽

J. W. Gilliam ◽

S. B. Weed

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Soil Drainage ◽

The North

Download Full-text

Nitrogen Balance for a Plantation Forest Drainage Canal on the North Carolina Coastal Plain

Transactions of the ASABE ◽

10.13031/2013.25239 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 51 (4) ◽

pp. 1215-1233 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

T. W. Appelboom ◽

G. M. Chescheir ◽

R. W. Skaggs ◽

J. W. Gilliam ◽

D. M. Amatya

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Nitrogen Balance ◽

Plantation Forest ◽

Drainage Canal ◽

The North ◽

Forest Drainage

Download Full-text

A Limited Rapid Assessment of Forest Regeneration in 24 Cypress and Tupelo Bottomland Swamps Following Clearcutting and Shovel Logging in the Coastal Plain of North Carolina

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11080854 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. 854

Author(s):

James N. Slye ◽

Albert J. Lang ◽

Tom A. Gerow

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Species Composition ◽

Coastal Plain ◽

Forest Regeneration ◽

Rapid Assessment ◽

Seed Source ◽

Timber Species ◽

The North ◽

Altered Hydrology ◽

Species Composition Change

A rapid regeneration survey within twenty-four deepwater swamps between stand ages 2 and 14 years in the North Carolina coastal plain was conducted by using a narrow rectangular inventory technique (“strip cruise”). Inventoried tracts predominantly contained cypress (Taxodium distichum) and tupelo (Nyssa species) before being harvested via clearcutting methods. Single transects on each tract began at coordinates located in the interior of the harvest areas in locations representing general tract conditions. Each transect was perpendicular to the flow of the major stream drainage associated with the harvest area. Counts and measures of dead and live stumps and seed-sourced regeneration were recorded. About 52 percent of desirable timber species stumps tallied had coppice growth. However, coppice alone was not sufficient on any tract to exceed 1112 trees ha−1. Seventy-one percent of tracts had stocking levels (coppice and seed source) at least 1112 trees ha−1 of desirable timber species or black willow (Salix nigra). Across 24 tracts, 42 percent regenerated cypress and/or tupelo to levels exceeding 1112, trees ha−1. This assessment revealed that forest regeneration success was limited on sites with altered hydrology, rampant invasive species, and/or lack of seed source. In some cases, active forest management may improve the regeneration cohort. Overall, shovel logging methods that were used on evaluated sites appear to be compatible with adequate regeneration of desirable timber species if the proper conditions exist. Additionally, we assessed species’ composition within a harvested stand measured at age eight years (a previous study) and age 68 years (measured for this study), for a comparison perspective. Results revealed a species composition change from willow at age eight years to a mixed stand of desirable timber species at age 68 years. This finding supports other studies that have recorded the successional pattern of pioneering willow shifting to desirable timber species as willow stagnates and diminishes in abundance due to natural mortality.

Download Full-text