Vaccinium myrtillus western Picea taiga

Description (English)

Forests of Picea abies, Picea obovata, or Picea spp. and Pinus sylvestris, of Fennoscandia, Russia west of the Ural piedmont, Belarus, the Baltic States, northeastern Poland, with an understorey dominated by Vaccinium myrtillus, Deschampsia flexuosa and mosses, developed on mesic moraine ground, on podsols with heavy raw humus. They constitute the most widespread and characteristic type of western spruce taiga in the boreal zone and extend to the boreonemoral zone. Accompanying small tree and shrub species include Betula pubescens, Sorbus aucuparia, Empetrum spp., Juniperus communis, Vaccinium vitis-idaea, Ledum palustre (in the north), with a field layer comprising Linnaea borealis, Maianthemum bifolium, Melampyrum pratense, Solidago virgaurea, Trientalis europaea, Luzula pilosa, Lycopodium annotinum, Dicranum spp., Hylocomium splendens, Pleurozium schreberi. In the boreo-nemoral zone, deciduous trees may accompany the conifers, in particular, Quercus robur, Tilia cordata, Acer platanoides, Ulmus laevis, Populus tremula.

Source: EUNIS habitat classification