Presenter(s)

Sarah Metz, Emma Borgert, Katie Holmes, Anna Pallone

Comments

Presentation: 10:45 a.m.-12:00 p.m., Kennedy Union Ballroom

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Description

We studied the ecosystem process of flushing rates of Amur Honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii) in the Environmental Research Area at Old River Park. We wanted to see if Amur honeysuckle stand density had an impact on leaf flushing rates. We expected to see higher rates of leaf flushing in plants with lower densities of Amur honeysuckle, and lower rates in plants with greater densities surrounding them. We collected data at Old River Park in three separate sampling events. On the first sampling day, we established twenty Amur honeysuckle plants ranging from low to high density of surrounding honeysuckle. Ten samples were on the exterior of the oxbow lake, and ten samples were on the interior of the oxbow lake. We recorded the length of ten random buds on each tree using calipers. We measured leaf lengths on these plants weekly. We also performed stem counts of woody plants in five-meter diameter transects around each sample to calculate density. Additionally, we took soil samples directly under the roots of each sample using soil cores to determine if soil properties affected leaf flushing rates. The soil samples were taken back to the lab for processing and analysis the following week. All data was then managed and analyzed using Excel and R. studio. Preliminary results from our study show a pattern of higher flushing rates in low-density areas and lower flushing rates in higher-density areas which supports our hypothesis.

Publication Date

4-19-2023

Project Designation

Course Project 202310 BIO 459L 01

Primary Advisor

Chelse Prather

Primary Advisor's Department

Biology

Keywords

Stander Symposium, College of Arts and Sciences

Density effects on Lonicera maackii leaf flushing rates

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