The association Rhodothamno-Laricetum Willner & Zukrigl 1999 comprises natural larch stands in the (alti)montane and subalpine belt (from 520 to 1900 m a.s.l.) in the Julian Alps, the Karavanke and the Kamnik-Savinja Alps. They populate very steep to perpendicular, shady rocky slopes in the belt of beech and fir-beech forests, as well as prominences and ledges in rock walls above the upper beech forest line. Frequently, they are a long-term pioneer stage on former, high-mountain pastures, where beech or spruce forest used to form potential natural vegetation. Basic characteristics of this community are an open tree layer, dominating larch in all stand layers and its solid natural regeneration, abundant shrub and herb layer which features numerous species characteristic of the subalpine belt. Larch forests on remote ledges and prominences that are difficult to access are among the best preserved, the most primary forest stands in the Slovenian Alps, and are comparable to virgin forest remnants in the northern part of the Dinaric mountains. This is also a habitat type of Community interest (HT 9420) and a site of some rare and (or) protected fungi, lichens and vascular plants of European conservation concern: Laricifomes officinalis, Laetiporus huroniensis = L. montanus, Letharia vulpina, Linnaea borealis, Cypripedium calceolus and Listera cordata, as well as a habitat of forest grouses Tetrao urogallus, T. tetrix.
COBISS.SI-ID: 263083264