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<br /> <br /> <br />The dircrsit~ of plant species- in each area was evaluated using data acquired from the point- <br />intercept transects. Data from the transects was used to determine [he relative cover of each <br />species detected (Equation 2). <br /> (2) <br /> <br />1 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Relative Cover of Species X = ~ Cover of Species X <br />Total Vegetative Cover <br />Production was determined by hand clipping three sepazate one-half square meter quadrate plots <br />along each 50-meter cover transect at meter-marks 8, 18, and 32. Plot placement was randomly <br />selected prior to submittal of the approved sampling protocol. Additionally, the first production <br />plot (meter 8) on each transect was not clipped until after the cover sample-point at that <br />particulaz portion of the transect was taken. Vegetation was clipped and sepazated by life-form <br />(perennial grass, annual grass, perennial forb, undesirable perennial forb, annual forb, and <br />biennial forb) and the single species alfalfa. Clipped vegetation was initially separated and <br />weighed to the nearest 0.1 gram with the corresponding "wet" weight recorded. The three plots <br />per transect were then averaged, resulting in an individual production value per sample <br />(transect). The "wet"weights for each sample were utilized to determine that an adequate number <br />of samples had been collected. The clipped vegetation was then oven-dried and re-weighed as a <br />Yield "dry" weight. The dry weights were converted to pounds per acre for each sampled area <br />(Tables A-6, A-8, and A-10). <br />' Fifteen transects per sample area were initially conducted prior to evaluation of sample <br />adequacy. Sample adequacy for vegetative cover and biomass production within each sampling <br />area was determined using the Snedecor-Cochran sample adequacy tbrmula (Equation 3). <br />1 (3) <br /> <br />t Where: <br />1 <br />r'S' <br />Nm~~ _ , <br />(dr)- <br />Nm;° = the minimum number of transects or quadrants needed, <br />t = the a = .10 t-table value for asingle-tailed t-test with n-1 degrees of <br />freedom, <br />s~ = the sample variance. <br />d = I (level of precision for estimate of the mean to be within 10% of the <br />actual mean), and. <br />= the sample mean. <br />A-2 <br />