In my initial planning, I chose five random quadrats in my backyard to study and examine the effect of mowing on the abundance of dandelions; however, for an unfortunate reason, I had to settle for two quadrats only. My landlord decided to use most of the backyard for his renovation project. My alternative plan was to use two quadrats. One is to be used as a control plot, while the other is mowed weekly.
The thing that was out of my control was the night visitors (animals). I believe they are a mix of rabbits, squirrels, and raccoons. They left their feces which may be an external factor in my findings. The other thing is the rain; we had weighty rain for two days, which is another uncontrollable factor. The last uncontrollable factor, and I am not sure if it causes any changes in my study, is the birds visiting the quadrat after mowing it; these are some of my confounding variables.
I was thinking of modifying my study by using different mowing lengths and seeing the effect on the abundance of dandelions. Still, unfortunately, my mower is an old model that only cuts with one length of 3-5 cm. So, my study ended with a fixed mower length and two quadrats.
Great idea for a study! I like how accessible it is, while also proving to be a challenge with the external factors.
Do you think that the study area will be accessible for the duration of the study? Will sunlight/weather patterns affect the total study area in generally the same way? I love the idea, can’t wait to see what results you find!