| Terrestrial Research at Coweeta LTER
Terrestrial research is organized across the landscape with elevations ranging from 678 to 1592 m along the complex environmental gradients created by abiotic factors including elevation, aspect, precipitation, and temperature. Terrestrial processes including productivity, decomposition, soil nitrogen mineralization, photosynthesis, respiration, herbivory, seed rain, and seedling demography are quantified along this gradient. This gradient approach allows the functional relationships between variables to be defined and also allows the variables to be extrapolated to the larger landscape of the southern Appalachians. |