This is the most common type of spruce forest in the Czech mountains. It is dominated by Picea abies, with Sorbus aucuparia as a subcanopy tree. Its species-poor herb layer is dominated by the grasses Avenella flexuosa and Calamagrostis villosa and the dwarf shrub Vaccinium myrtillus. The moss layer is well developed. In the Sudetes these spruce forests occur as zonal vegetation from about 1050 m a.s.l. up to the timberline, in the Šumava Mountains from about 1200 m. However, at sites with cool topoclimate these forests can occur at much lower altitudes, rarely even as low as 300 m. This community occurs mainly on acidic podzols, but also on gleyic soils or on rankers over talus slopes. Under natural conditions it was probably maintained by infrequent strong disturbances, especially large-scale windthrow events with subsequent insect outbreaks. Most of the current stands are managed.