Stellenbosch University – Stellenbosch, South Africa
Since I arrived the majority of my work has been in assisting in a Marie Curie project funded by the United Nations. The goals of the project are to look at climate change, specifically drought, and its effect on tree growth in Pinus radiata and Pinus pinaster forest stands. I have been involved in setting up a baseline plot to compliment three plots that have already been established. We have measured DBH, heights of the trees, cored roots and measured crown compaction numbers for the dominant and suppressed trees within the stands. This stand data is paired with localized climate data (temperature, precipitation, wind direction) that is collected on a weekly basis. Nine trees are also cored weekly to see how growth is affected over a short time period.
