Vegetation surveys were performed at 45 plots along 10 highways cut slopes in South Korea. Total floral inventory, species richness and exotic plant percentage were obtained within each plot. Life history and life form of each species appeared were analyzed. Community types were classified using hierarchical cluster analysis and detrended correspondence analysis and non-metric multidimensional scaling were conducted from vegetation matrix. 292 species of vascular plants were discovered and the number of natives and exotics were 226 and 66, respectively. There were no significant differences of species richness and exotic plant percentage between cut slopes and rest areas. Hierarchical cluster analysis indicated five clear vegetation associations in cut slopes and rest areas. Detrended correspondence analysis indicated that species composition of total and native plants were similar along the highway cut slopes whereas exotic plants were distributed differentially along the highway cut slopes. In non-metric multidimensional scaling, the studied sites were more separated from each other on the basis of their species composition than the results of detrended correspondence analysis with respect to total, native and exotic plants. The both ordination represented that exotic plants have not been made uniform yet on cut slopes and rest areas by highway corridor in spite of diverse chronosequences after highway construction termination (1 to 22 years). This study showed that the distribution of species composition in exotic plants was different and localized on cut slopes and rest areas of highway in this representative peninsula area of North East Asia and the invasion of exotic plants can retard the process of plant species homogenization.

• Kee Dae Kim(Department of Environmental Education, Korea National University of Education) Corresponding Author