Sampling Vegetation Attributes - Natural Resources Conservation ...
Sampling Vegetation Attributes - Natural Resources Conservation ...
Sampling Vegetation Attributes - Natural Resources Conservation ...
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114<br />
METHODS—Harvest<br />
7. Taking Photographs The directions for establishing photo plots and for taking<br />
close-up and general view photographs are given in Section V.A.<br />
8. <strong>Sampling</strong> Process In addition to collecting the specific studies data, general<br />
observations should be made of the study sites (see Section II.F).<br />
a Determine the transect bearing and select a prominent distant landmark such as<br />
a peak, rocky point, etc., that can be used as the transect bearing point.<br />
b Randomly select the starting point along the transect bearing. Take the specified<br />
number of paces and read the first quadrat.<br />
c Record weights by clipping and weighing all vegetative material for each species<br />
occurring in the quadrat. Samples should be bagged and saved for determining<br />
air-dry weights. Samples from subsequent quadrats should be kept separate.<br />
The following information should be record on each bag: Date, Transect<br />
Number, Quadrat Number, and Species.<br />
When harvesting plants, include all parts of all plants within the quadrat. Exclude<br />
all parts of herbaceous plants and shrubs outside the vertical projection of<br />
the quadrat, even though the base is within the quadrat (see Illustration 23).<br />
d Continue the transect by establishing additional quadrats at specified intervals.<br />
To change the length of the transect, adjust the number of paces between<br />
quadrats.<br />
e Oven-dry samples at 60˚C for 24 hours to determine air-dry weight.<br />
9. Calculations The weights collected for each species per quadrat placement are<br />
recorded on the Production form (see Illustration 22).<br />
a The green weight for each species is totaled for the entire transect and shown in<br />
column 5.<br />
b Column 6 is the total dry weight for each species. This column is totaled at the<br />
bottom of the form for the composition totals.<br />
c Percent composition (Column 11) is calculated by dividing the total dry weight<br />
of each species by the composition totals.<br />
d Columns 4, 7, 8, 9,and 10 are used only for double sampling.<br />
e If plant biomass is collected in grams, it can be easily converted to pounds per<br />
acres if the total area sampled is a multiple of 9.6 ft 2 .