TA News

     The Outdoor Class conducted an experiment to see if age affects the height of red pine trees. Red pines were cored to measure age and a clinometer was used to measure height. Eight total trees were tested in different sites. Four of the trees tested were naturally growing and the other four were planted. Soil, diameter, and circumference were also noted for all samples. The data showed that the trees that are the same height are not the same age. It was also noted that one naturally growing tree was 175 years old and about half the height of an 80 year old planted tree. In conclusion the data shown that the height of a tree is affected by many variables, not just age.

     During this project, my favorite tool was the increment borer. This tool cores into the tree and pulls out a long piece of wood that scientist use to measure the age of the tree. It also gives us information on previous climate patterns. The class made a display on what we did during this project. It is a great visual demonstration on what we learned and how we did the experiment.