Woody plant composition, trees per ha, and basal area, are provided for both units of the W.L. Giles Bur Oak Preserve, in the Black Belt Prairie region of Oktibbeha County, Mississippi. A total of 1,273 individual trees were marked, measured, and identified between the two units of the preserve. The southern unit contained 1,115 trees from 31 species and was dominated both numerically and in basal area by sugarberry (Celtis laevigata) and green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica). The northern unit contained 158 trees from 18 species and was dominated by sugarberry, eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), and bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) respectively in terms of both abundance and basal area.

New state records or clarifications of state distribution are presented for twenty taxa of vascular plants growing in West Virginia. These include twelve species considered native but overlooked in the state, one hybrid between species native to North America, four species native to North America but believed to be introduced in the state, and three species not native to North America.

Hypotrachyna oprah is described as new to science from collections made at locations in southeastern North America (Alabama, Florida, North Carolina). The species is considered rare and was potentially confused with H. osseoalba in the past. It differs from H. osseoalba in having capitate soralia and producing echinocarpic acid, together with related substances, in the medulla. The specific epithet was chosen to honor Dr. Oprah Winfrey for her performances, media presence, and generous philanthropy that have substantially improved humanity.

Data from field trips and a survey of herbarium specimens was used to determine relative abundance of the ten known species of Rhododendron (Ericaceae) in each county of South Carolina. All counties were documented to contain at least one species. The western-most mountainous and upper piedmont counties of Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg, and Greenville were found to have the greatest richness and the greatest number of documented populations. Of the four counties with only one documented species, three are in the piedmont and one in the coastal plain. Species found in the greatest number of counties were Rhododendron canescens. R. viscosum, and R. periclymenoides. Meanwhile species known from the fewest number of counties were R. calendulaceum. R. flammeum. R. maximum, and R. arborescens. Taxonomic keys were generated for species identification, the first key for spring and early summer flowering material, and the second for summer and fall vegetative or fruiting material.

A second population of Phemeranthus calycinus (Montiaceae, large-flowered rock pink) was confirmed for southwestern Illinois. This is the second site known east of the Mississippi River for this taxon.

The ability of seeds to persist long term and still germinate readily with substantial seedling survival are characteristics shared by many invasive plants, often leading to dominance of species in invaded sites. One rapidly spreading species in the United States is the Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana), which can form dense monocultures following bird dispersal of seed formed by cross-pollination among genetically different ornamental cultivars and rootstock. However, the length of viability of these seeds or their subsequent ability to germinate and survive as seedlings was unknown. We compared the percentage of seed germination and seedling survival using fruits collected from three cultivars in 2006 with a subsample kept in cold storage for 11 years; we also measured the viability of stored seeds that failed to germinate. Although seed germination declined, it continued to be substantial even after 11 years (45%–87%); seeds that did not germinate were viable in some cases, although this varied by maternal cultivar. Of those 11-year-old seeds that germinated, survival of the seedlings over four months was lower but still substantial (54–81%), compared to survival of seedlings generated from fresh seeds (91–95%). These results indicate that a prominent seed bank may exist in invaded sites, posing a challenge to management programs of the Callery Pear.

Snake Creek Gorge is in the Brevard Fault Zone of the Georgia Piedmont, USA. We conducted an inventory of the vascular plants of the gorge throughout the 2016 growing season in a 20 ha study area and additionally evaluated variation in community compositions in 91 100 m² quadrats. We measured six habitat and community characteristics in each plot: relative elevation in the gorge, slope percentage, slope aspect, canopy cover, soil pH, and basal area. Ordination analyses of the plant communities were conducted and the six plot characteristics were included to evaluate correlations between habitat and community composition. The dominant natural community was mesic forest, while other community types included dry-mesic forest, riparian zones, boggy seepage areas, and rock outcrops. We documented 436 species and subspecific taxa. In the Georgia Piedmont, 62 of the taxa are uncommon, 27 are rare—including two threatened species—and 53 are not native. Twenty of the taxa are endemic to the southeastern USA, ten are common in the Appalachians but uncommon or rare in the Georgia Piedmont, and eleven are common in the Coastal Plain but uncommon or rare in the Georgia Piedmont. Ordination showed that the characteristic most strongly correlated with community composition was relative elevation, followed by slope percentage, slope aspect, and canopy cover. Soil pH was more weakly correlated with community composition, and basal area was most weakly correlated. These findings provide baseline information that should be valuable in understanding the ecology of these unique habitats.

Endemic to the mountains of Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia, piratebush (Buckleya distichophylla, Santalaceae) is a rare, dioecious, hemi-parasitic shrub with a scattered and isolated distribution. Vegetative reproduction and few visible seedlings within the densest population of piratebush on Poor Mountain in southwest Virginia emphasize the need for research into this species' reproductive biology to inform conservation strategies. Pollination data showed no evidence for wind pollination; instead multiple diurnal floral visitors to staminate flowers were observed. Fluorescence microscopy of stigma and styles on initiated fruits revealed almost 95% with pollen deposition. Most initiated fruits (52%) had tube growth continue to the base of the style, indicating potential fertilization. Pollination experiments showed outcrossing was necessary for fruit set. Non-pollinated flowers in bags had 0% fruit development, whereas fruit development in both open pollinated (86%) (p< 0.0001) and hand pollinated (65%) treatments (p<0.0001) were significantly greater. Embryo viability analysis indicated 73% of seeds had healthy embryos. Germination trials indicated that seeds must undergo stratification for successful germination. Germination for control (70.9%) and 10 min bleach (72.6%) treatments were significantly higher than mechanically scarified fruits/seeds (27.2%), suggesting a potentially negative impact that rodent gnawing would have on seed germination. Further, evidence of heavy seed predation was observed. These results suggest that there may be sufficient pollinators, successful outcrossing and seed development, and that embryos are viable and have the potential to germinate, but imply that seed predation may be a key reproductive constraint for piratebush.

Taxonomists have traditionally distinguished two very similar Southern Appalachian endemic herbs, Micranthes careyana and M. caroliniana, by differences in four floral characters: sepal orientation, filament shape, petal coloration, and fruit length. Yet identification in the field and the herbarium has proven difficult, which is problematic for monitoring populations and determining rarity. The goal of this study was to examine these characters to clarify the differences between these species and their distribution, and to look for molecular differences in DNA sequences. Morphological variation was examined in the field and the herbarium, while leaf material was collected in the field for molecular analyses. Two of the four reported floral characters proved to be useful in species identification: sepal orientation and filament shape. Other key characters were not diagnostic to species. Fixed differences in floral characters were correlated with fixed differences in nuclear and chloroplast DNA sequences, supporting their distinction as unique species in accordance with the diagnosability species concept. In molecular phylogenetic analyses, M. caroliniana and M. careyana accessions are reciprocally monophyletic and may not be sister species. Both are shown to be closely related to M. virginiensis, a widespread and variable taxon. We present a key to identifying M. careyana, M. caroliniana, and M. virginiensis in the Southern Appalachians and lectotypify M. careyana and M. caroliniana, names based on Asa Gray basionyms.