How can I judge the proportion of full leaf size while leaves are still increasing in size?
This is a little difficult the first year you try it, but gets easier with practice. If you are in doubt, you can use a ruler to measure full size (length and/or width) of a typical leaf during summer of the first year, and then use that measure to better judge the proportion of full leaf size during the period of leaf growth in subsequent years. We are asking observers to note when leaves are less than 25%, 25-49%, 50-74%, 75-94% or 95% or more of full leaf size in order to create an estimate of the time it takes for leaves to grow to full size.. Including this measure allows scientists to keep track of the length of the “green-up” period which is an important aspect of a plant’s response to climate change.
This is a little difficult the first year you try it, but gets easier with practice. If you are in doubt, you can use a ruler to measure full size (length and/or width) of a typical leaf during summer of the first year, and then use that measure to better judge the proportion of full leaf size during the period of leaf growth in subsequent years. We are asking observers to note when leaves are less than 25%, 25-49%, 50-74%, 75-94% or 95% or more of full leaf size in order to create an estimate of the time it takes for leaves to grow to full size. Including this measure allows scientists to keep track of the length of the “green-up” period which is an important aspect of a plant’s response to climate change.
