At Tampolo, a littoral forest/swamp that runs straight into the sea, the group learned about a basic forestry skill, the plant inventory. A plant inventory is a survey of the plants in an area. Typical plant inventories are done in three concentric squares. The largest square survey tracks the largest tree’s, the medium square the medium trees, and the smallest looks for new/young trees. The median of the squares is marked out by tall poles. When the inventory is commencing several people fan out on one side of the square and move forward shouting out the name of any plant they see that meets the requires size to a scribe on the side of the plot Usually they also note tree trunk length, diameter of tree, and tree canopy height. After data collection, this inventory is useful in describing the biodiversity of the forest and is also useful in comparison studies.
Three Square Fields a Day
