By Daniel Halsey, NC Admin on Monday, 09 October 2017
Posted in Web Site Comments
Replies 0
Likes 0
Views 5.1K
Votes 0
Hi Dan in South Africa,

[b]Thanks for working on this.
http://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?L is not a citation. We don’t use urls as citations. They die and have no real reference to the source.
PFAF is also a source, but not a citation. They have their own citation and you should use that of there is one.
Rooibos is a nitrogen fixer based on some research.

Rooibos is a nitrogen… Google this. Find a paper or authority for a citation source. Like https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239797836_Rooibos_Aspalathus_linearis_burm_f_and_its_nitrogen_fixing_bacterial_symbionts
Which would be cited as Hassen, Ahmed. (2012). Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis burm f.) and its nitrogen fixing bacterial symbionts.
We have PFAF used a lot in some early plants, but have found much of their information incomplete or not correct.

Name of person, year, article name, publication, publisher….
Something like this. I prefer the APA citation standard.
APA: Like… Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th edition … that simple if a book or article. Add a name like above if available.

Finding this data is as much a research and learning opportunity for us as adding plants to the database. I use the data mining to gather supporting data for my own references.
[/b]

1) I am going to be focusing on indigenous SA plants, so are all "Native" to SA, however, the database is USA based, so all of them should be checked as "Non-Native", correct?
YES

2) Under tolerances, what is "2,4-D"?
It is a herbicide used in agriculture.

3) I am pretty sure I understand what "Stand Persistence" means, but please clarify?
The ability of the plant to withstand repeated grazing or harvesting. Like resilience to disturbance. Alfalfa has good stand persistence.

4) When it comes to "Lifespan", how "Long" is long?
Good questions, it comes up occasionally. We consider a human lifespan long, but some trees live a thousand years. Box Elder is considered short since it rots and falls over in a few (20) years. Perennials would be a different scale. Biennials are short. Annuals are short. Shrubs can be very long. Good to make a note, its all relative to the type of plant.

5) We don't have Deer or Gophers, but should I continue to treat the plants in respect to Antelope and burrowing rodents?
This will be changing as we go, Use the note box but mark for deer (large herbivores) and rabbits for rodents.

I will add these notes to our discussion on the database.

Thanks,

Dan in USA
View Full Post