1) The document describes an experiment to measure the net primary productivity (NPP) of fescue plants through a lab involving planting, trimming, and weighing grass clippings over time.
2) The average NPP measured among student groups was 0.00010025 g/cm^2/day, much lower than the known average of 0.058 g/cm^2/year for fescue plants.
3) The high percent error of 99.94% indicated that this experimental method did not provide an efficient way to calculate fescue NPP, likely due to limitations such as small plot sizes and lack of natural soil conditions.
1) The document describes an experiment to measure the net primary productivity (NPP) of fescue plants through a lab involving planting, trimming, and weighing grass clippings over time.
2) The average NPP measured among student groups was 0.00010025 g/cm^2/day, much lower than the known average of 0.058 g/cm^2/year for fescue plants.
3) The high percent error of 99.94% indicated that this experimental method did not provide an efficient way to calculate fescue NPP, likely due to limitations such as small plot sizes and lack of natural soil conditions.
1) The document describes an experiment to measure the net primary productivity (NPP) of fescue plants through a lab involving planting, trimming, and weighing grass clippings over time.
2) The average NPP measured among student groups was 0.00010025 g/cm^2/day, much lower than the known average of 0.058 g/cm^2/year for fescue plants.
3) The high percent error of 99.94% indicated that this experimental method did not provide an efficient way to calculate fescue NPP, likely due to limitations such as small plot sizes and lack of natural soil conditions.
Mrs. Norris 7 October 2014 NPP Lab of Fescue Plants The purpose of this lab is to be able to determine primary productivity, which is a measure of the amount of photosynthesis that an ecosystem undergoes and this contributes to gross primary productivity. The gross primary productivity is the measure of the total amount of chemical energy (glucose or sugar) created from the sunlight an area receive. Through cellular respiration, the producers must also use some of the glucose made to create ATP. If you take the GPP, and subtract the glucose used to create ATP, then, what is left if the net primary productivity. The net primary productivity is the remaining chemical energy that is available to the consumers in that ecosystem. This lab was performed by Caroline Corrigan and Jared David as my partners. The hypothesis is that if fescue seeds are planted and trimmed to 2 cm after 7 days, then the NPP of the plant will be lower than the average of 58g/cm^2/year. There is only a control variable in this experiment, cutting the height of the grass to 2 cm. To perform this experiment, one will need fescue plants (grass seeds), metric ruler, scissors, liter soda bottle, and heat lamp. The first day of the lab, one will need to plant the grass seeds in soil and water them and continue to water them for a week. After a week, using the metric ruler and scissors trim the grass down to 2 cm, and discard all of the clipping from the plot. Allow the grass to continue growing for another ten days. After the ten days cut the grass down to 2 cm again and, just like last time, discard all clipping from the plot. But this time, set the clippings in an open petri dish to dry for 2 days. Weigh the petri dish separately without the grass and calculate the area of the plot used in the experiment. After two days, weight the grass clipping and record. Calculate the net primary productivity using the formula below. Then obtain the NPP data from the other groups in the class and calculate the class average of NPP for fescue grass. Then compare this average with the known NPP of fescue plants being 58g/cm^2/year. Lastly calculate the percent error of the experiment. NPP= Biomass/area/days
Data: Group Biomass (g) Area of Plot (cm^2) # of Days of Growth NPP Regular Form 1 .1 176.25 6 9.46 x 10^- 5 .0000946 2 .1 102 6 1.634 x 10^-4 .0001634 3 .1 195.5 6 8.52 x 10^- 5 .0000852 4 .1 163.88 6 1.017 x 10^-4 .0001017 5+6 .1 147 6 1.13 x 10^- 4 .000113 7 .1 270 6 6.17 x 10^- 5 .0000617 8 .1 240 6 6.94 x 10^- 5 .0000694
Average NPP: 1.0025 x 10^-4 or .00010025 Percent error: 99.94%
The class data showed an average NPP of 1.0025 x 10^-4 with a percent error of 99.94%. While calculating the biomass of the fescue plants there was a skewed result in each groups calculations. Therefore, each group assumed that the calculation of biomass would be .1. The only varying factor after the biomass calculation was the area of the plot obtained. There were many factors that could have skewed the results of the calculations and results such as, amount of water, richness of soil and maintenance of the fescue while growing. Because the percent error was so high, this method did not prove it would be an efficient way to calculate net primary productivity of fescue plants. This method may work better on a larger plot actually exposed to natural minerals in the soil and an even amount of rain throughout the whole plot. The original hypothesis was correct in stating if fescue seeds are planted and trimmed to 2 cm after 7 days, then the NPP of the plant will be lower than the average of 58g/cm^2/year. The NPP calculated was significantly lower than the average. The hypothesis was wrong in the sense that it would be a little lower, in actuality, the NPP was in the decimal range. To test an environmental effect on net primary productivity, you could set up many of the same plot sizes, control the amount of water, and test acid rain on each of the plots testing the effect of acid rain on fescue grass and its NPP. Understanding the NPP of an ecosystem is important in being able to determine how healthy that ecosystem is, and how much biomass that ecosystem is putting out.