The Hedgerow Project research area is a 344 acre tract located in the heart of the Ragged Mountains 1 mile southwest of Charlottesville. These rugged hills are underlain by the nearly one billion-year-old rocks of the Blue Ridge Basement Complex. Due to their variable mineral content, these gneisses have weathered into soils which are in both the Acidic and Basic spectrums. This combined with higher elevations than much of the surrounding Piedmont, and a varied topography, has resulted in an unusual diversity of flora of both Piedmont and Blue Ridge affinity. The landscape contains a wide variety of natural plant communities, from lush Basic Mesic Forests in the deep ravines to the starkly beautiful (and rare) Piedmont Mafic Barrens on hot, dry bedrock outcrops on the upper southeast facing slopes.
Overview
Due to the varied elevations and topography, rich soils, and fairly remote nature of the landscape at the Hedgerow property, our survey crew documented:
➢ 493 species of plants (66 non-native)
➢ 80 species of birds
➢ 23 species of dragonflies and damselflies
➢ 52 species of butterflies
➢ 14 distinct natural communities
➢ The first Albemarle county record of Little Brown Skink (Scincella lateralis)
➢ Multiple occurrences of the critically imperiled Piedmont Mafic Barren (less than 40 occurrences globally)
Noteworthy plant and animal species documented on the property include:
➢ Breeding population of Kentucky Warblers (Geothlypis formosa) as well as Hooded Warblers (Setophaga citrina) and Worm-eating Warblers (Helmitheros vermivorum).
➢ Several plant species of montane affinity, including four-leaved milkweed (Asclepias quadrifolia), Standley’s goosefoot (Chenopodium standleyanum), purple bedstraw (Galium latifolium), bear oak (Quercus ilicifolia), rose moss (Rhodobryum ontariense), woodland bulrush (Scirpus expansus), and dwarf spiraea (Spiraea corymbosa).
➢ A new population of the Appalachian Azure (Celastrina neglectamajor), an Appalachian butterfly species rare in the Piedmont, where it is confined to sheltered, cool ravines with its host plant black cohosh (Actaea racemosa).
Summary(Click to expand)
This project was the first formal effort to quantify biodiversity in this part of the Raggeds in an in-depth, systematic way using quantitative data and high-resolution mapping of ecological communities and cultural resources. The project took place over the span of 3 ½ years and produced a great wealth of information on this area’s rich history and biodiversity. The goals and objectives of the project are below.
The primary goal of this survey was to identify and describe the ecosystems, plants, and animals, and undertake a preliminary inventory of cultural resources, on Albemarle County’s property known as the “Hedgerow Tract”. The project had 3 overarching objectives:
To describe and map all ecological communities occurring on the Hedgerow Tract by utilizing the Relevé method (Braun-Blanquet) to characterize these communities’ vegetative structure, physiographic characteristics, and condition.
To identify, map, and describe important cultural resources on the Hedgerow Tract, and create a description of human occupation on the land through time.
To identify distinctive natural and cultural features, and synthesize and communicate an integrated interpretation of that information, so it may be used to guide park development, management, and use decisions (including those related to habitat, species, and archaeological site protection, the development of recreational facilities such as trails and overlooks, and interpretive components such as signs, maps, and web-based information.
The results of this multi-year survey were published in a Final Report which is available to read here.
The survey crew
Taking a core sample from a pignut hickory (Carya glabra)
Appalachian Azure caterpillar (Celastrina neglectamajor) with ants
Unidentified grasshopper
Splendid Tiger Beetle (Cicindela splendida)
Appalachian Azure (Celastrina neglectamajor)
Cultural Resources(Click to expand)
In addition to its rich biodiversity, the Hedgerow tract also has a long history of human habitation. Several prehistoric artifacts were found on the property, and the presence of multiple rock shelters adds to the likelihood that indigenous people inhabited this land at some point. More recently, these hills and hollows were settled by Europeans, a few of whom brought with them enslaved Africans. A number of free Black families made the Raggeds home as well. Today, old homesites, stone walls, borrow pits, colonies of exotic ornamental plants, and a wide variety of artifacts from mason jars to old cars dot the Study Area, reminders of those who made the Ragged Mountains their home.
