User: | Open Learning Faculty Member:
I sampled 5 replicates. Since my sample unit was individual Arbutus trees I could not take exact copies for replicate samples. Instead I made 5 groupings of individual arbutus trees that were clustered close together and then randomly selected 2 from each group, making 5 replicates or 10 samples.
In general the pattern that I expected held true with the majority of unhealthy and small arbutus trees belonging to areas with thick forests and tall tree canopies (creating unfavourable light conditions and overcrowding the soil), which would make the trees more susceptible to disease. Additionally the reverse was true, in that the largest and healthiest trees were growing on cliffs or wide open areas with few tall tree neighbours.
There was one sample that was completely unhealthy in an area I would have expected to be growing well (wide open area with little competition). It’s possible that this tree had poor soil conditions, or that there was more competition in the roots area, or that this area had a higher abundance of whatever microorganism was causing the diseased leaves.
I noticed that in some of the forested areas, Arbutus trees were attempting to grow sideways to an open area (where the walking path was located), to escape the shade from the canopy of the trees, and that at least a few of the branches that grew sideways had healthier leaves.
