It can be difficult to count individual plants of clonal species as they are often unrecognisable from their neighbours. You can use the number count. If plants have single stems, then this is easy. If they have multiple stems, then you can divide the total stem number by the mean number of stems per plant.

Why don't you go for cover measurement instead of density.

@Jayasurya: i have done the cover measurements in my previous study. But I wounder if there a method to somehow derive a number for stoloniferous plants (eg. grasses).

@Pegman: "If they have multiple stems, then you can divide the total stem number by the mean number of stems per plant." - what about plants which have underground branching, in that case it may be difficult to even recognize the branches of individual plants. eg. many grasses branches underground.

Hi Nehru,

My best advice is that you check papers in which they measure population dynamics of grasses and clover. There are many papers on this matter, particularly coming from temperate regions such as NZ and Ireland. I will link a few of them below that might help you achieve your goal.

Keep in mind that you are likely to have to make some compromises. I.e., you won't be able to make a perfect distinction of whether the stems correspond to the same plant or to a different one in case they branch underground. In that case, I would suggest, as previously done by Andrew, to count stems. If you disturb the canopy too much, and your idea is to follow those same areas through time, you will affect population dynamics of that sector.

Hope this helps.

Garay, A. H., Matthew, C., & Hodgson, J. (1997). Effect of spring grazing management on perennial ryegrass and ryegrass‐white clover pastures: 2. Tiller and growing point densities and population dynamics. New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 40(1), 37-50.

Hay, M. J. M., Brock, J. L., & Thomas, V. J. (1989). Density of Trifolium repens plants in mixed swards under intensive grazing by sheep. The Journal of Agricultural Science, 113(1), 81-86.

Brock, J. L., & Caradus, J. R. (1996). Influence of grazing management and drought on white clover population performance and genotypic frequency. SPECIAL PUBLICATION-AGRONOMY SOCIETY OF NEW ZEALAND, 79-82.

Nehru Prabakaran

- You can make your sample 25 cm * 25 cm because of high density plants in this case.

- To make it easy you can count stems and root nodes No. as follow:

1. Actual Stem No. for all samples.

2. Actual nodes No. 1 sample for every 5 samples.

3. Suggested nodes No. 4 samples for every 5 samples (dependent on your actual count = you need to count some samples may be 10 before begin).

4. Make regression equation for your results.

Best wishes,

I suggest to use relative abundance.Just subdivide your plots in sub-plots and count the number of sub-plots were your species fall.This method will take out the biases derived from stoloniferous species

Very good issue! I also want to know clearly the best possible methods and relevant publications about the clonal plant which were high density

spread on ground through root nodes (when I was counting I found they were too high density to easy count, especially it belongs to the needle leaf thus use the cover to count I think is notprecisely).

Waiting for the better methods, thank you very much!