FLORA                       

       

 
LITTERFALL MEASUREMENTS



1.

Litterfall is the plant matter that falls to the forest floor.  It is laden with nutrients which the plants reabsorb through their roots.  A sharp decrease in the amount of litterfall is indicative of deforestation.  Any major changes in the nutrient richness of the litterfall may be a sign that the area is in trouble.



Methods of measuring litterfall


Litterfall is collected in litterfall traps:


- round, long troughs, or conical
- have holes in the bottom or mesh sides to allow drainage of water
- Circular and conical ones suggested 80-100 cm in diameter (ie - not to big)
- trap placement can vary - sometimes evenly spaced, sometimes random spacing


During the rainy season litterfall needs to be measured at least once a week
During the dry season, it can go to monthly or bimonthly


Litterfall samples are separated into:
- leaves
- reproductive parts
- fine woody material
- residue


Discard any:
- animal material
- scarce adhering mineral material


Once samples are obtained
- dry them
- weigh them
- store for chemical analysis


Various methods of chemical analysis
- plasma emission spectrometry (For - Si, Al, Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca, Ti, P)
- atomic absorption spectrometry (For K and Na)(another study uses this for Na+, K+, Mg2+, and Ca2+)
- potenciometry (for NH4 +)
- ion liquid chromatography (For Cl-, SO4 2-)
- Kjeldahl digest by steam distillation and back titration (total N)


Next: Litterfall as a method to indicate health
References:
Biogeodiversity in the Amazon Basin
Pictures:
1. Picture from: http://64.38.195.240/photography/IMAGES/


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