The main objective of this study was to determine if there were relationships between forest floor attributes such as the location of: (1) individual trees, (2) clusters of undergrowth vegetation, (3) coarse woody debris, (4) rocks and (5) topography and both soil characteristics and distribution patterns of ectomycorrhizal fungal mats. This date set includes mat, rock, wood, and moss distribution patterns (as presence or absence at each sampling node) as well as basic soil date taken at the same locations. The forest floor attributes were digitized using ArcInfo®.
Robert P. Griffiths, Theresa J. Valentine
Earlier studies on 2 x 10 m plots showed not relationship between the distribution of rocks, trees and CWD and mat distribution patterns on the scale of a few meters. We wanted to determine if relationships between these features and mat distribution patterns could be detected at a larger scale. In this study we jumped from a 1 to at 5 m resolution. At this scale, the effects of large groupings of understory vegetation and large assemblages of CWD on mat distribution could be assessed. It also provided another opportunity to look at the role mats play in soil biogeochemical processes, supporting earlier studies