 Hello, I'm Marisol Berthia, I'm a professor in the Department of Plant Sciences and I'm doing this survey for alfalfa to try to model how we can determine yield and yield losses in alfalfa fields. So we're doing this sampling that county agents in the state will help me. So following up we'll do this instruction step by step on how to sample these fields. So now I want to show you first the materials that you're going to need for the sampling. In the mail or to your county agent specialist or the research station you're going to get the bags for sampling. For each field you sample you'll get three bags, you'll need three bags. Inside each bag you have twine and the instructions and the sheets that you're going to need to record the data. So you will need other material that is not coming in the bags but you will need a measuring stick or tape, measuring tape, flags or you could use sticks to whatever you have to mark four corners of a meter square and something to cut. We use these, you don't have one of these you could use a scissor or a grass clipper too. And of course you need a pencil to be able to record the data in here. It's a pencil and not a pen because if it gets wet you know the ink will get blurry where with a pencil that doesn't happen. And the first thing you're going to do is get field information that you have on these. So first field it your name, agent name, your contact person if it's yourself you can write it twice, county, township, range section and quarter where this field is. GPS location if you have it, if you have a cell phone you can use that if not that's okay, city, zip code and your email. Then write the sampling date, the day you're sampling, the alfalfa find from the farmer what is the alfalfa planting date, hopefully month and year if you don't have both just a year it will be okay and then if it's irrigated or not and if you're sampling the first cutting, second cutting, third cutting or more. So I'll fill this information first and then follow with instructions. So I'll write the name, I'm going to put my name here okay and the information of the field here where sampling in Fargo experimental station okay and then you write sampling date today is May 25th and this alfalfa was planted in 2011 in May. It's non-irrigated and this is the first cutting. So that's how you mark in your sheet. So now it's time to start sampling. Once you have the information completed select an area in your field to sample. Mark 30 feet in an area of the alfalfa field. Once you're in the area you're going to sample, nearby find three areas of a meter square, one with high density if possible, one with medium density like this area here and one with very low density. So try to get a range of densities in the tree square. So my students are going to mark a meter square in the high density area and this is what you do. We have a meter square made but you can do it with a measuring stick and put it in one side, get the flags, four flags you need for each meter square or a stake. So you put it in each one. So this will be the high density area that you're going to sample. After you've done the high and the medium, the last one we're going to do is the low density so find an area with very few plants like this, okay? And then they're going to mark it again, the four corners so we have those. Once you've marked the four of them, now you are ready to start taking notes and measuring the alfalfa density, height and staging in each square. Now you need to measure the height in each one of the squares, only measure one plant to the top. So go with your measuring stick or tape, whatever you have, straight the stem that you've chosen and measure the height, this is 20 inches high and recorded it in here where you're going to say your first plant, plant high, you say 20. Now the next thing you have to do is the staging and for the staging you're going to choose 10 stems, count 10, look at what stage they are and decide the staging. These, if I count 10 stems, this is an early vegetative stage. Now you are in the square with high density and you need to count plants. So you're going to separate the plants within the square here, okay? And for each plant, here's the corner, for each plant you're going to count the numbers of 10 set plants. This is one crown, you see one crown of a plant, so all these ones is only one plant here. So you count the stems, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26. You go in here and write 26 in your sheet, which is number of stems in each plant, okay? On the recording sheet on the other side, you go and write plant one has 26. Then you go to the next plant within the same middle square and say this is the next plant, this is the crown, it's a smaller plant, this plant has 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 stems. So you go in here and write 10. And you do that for every plant within the square, for this square and for each square. So this is sample one or square one and you write all the numbers of plants, as many plants as they are. I have up to 15 here but if you have more than 15 plants here, you just add columns here and add the number of plants and stems. So count the stems for each plant in the square. Do the same for the square with medium density and the square with low density. So this is the medium density square, Doulan is counting here and this plant has 35 stems. Once you count them, then you record in your paper and this sheet here, you record the number, in this case it's 35 stems for plant number one. Alright, this is the low density square, Alan is counting here the plant, this is one plant here within the square and he's going to count all the stems on that plant. Even the small stems, you see he's counting all of them. Now you're doing your low density square and you'll write some of the stems in each plant. So that plant has 44 stems and this is low density, you'll write plant one on this square has 44 stems. For grow staging, the plants in your square, that means what vegetative or bloom or bud stage are, you need to take 10 stems within your square, each one of the squares, lay them out on the ground like this, okay, and once you lay them down, then look at them really closely, what's the stage? You see here, each one of these is a flower bud, each one of these, okay, so this plant is in medium to late bud stage, already buds are coming, and about 4-5 days these buds are going to open and flowers will show up, they're purple color, so you'll see them. If you see a flower open, then this plant, this stem is already on bloom stage. So you have, one of these stems have one flower open, this is 10% bloom stage, if you have four of them with one flower open, then it will be 40% bloom stage. If in 10 plants, all of them are in bud stage, okay, this staging is 100% bud stage for this square. If one of these stems has one flower open, then the stage is 10% bloom. You have a diagram on the information I sent you for growth staging, so it shows what you have to look for, if you're still not sure how to measure it, just take a picture of the stems laying down and send it to me, together with the information. Alright, the next step, once you've already measured the height and determined the growth stage in each one of the squares, you can proceed to cut the plants. So once you go and cut the plants with your knife or scissors, whatever you have, cut them at the base, like my students will do here, they'll cut the plants at the base and start putting them in the burlap sack I have provided for this sampling. Every stem in the meter square cut it the closest you can to the ground and put it in the bag. Only put alfalfa plants, if you have weeds, don't put them in the bag, only alfalfa plants in the bag. They already cut all the plants in the meter square and then they're proceeding to put it inside the burlap bag. Remember the burlap bag had two tags. Once you put all the plants inside the burlap bag, you have to write in the tags the following information. Sampling date, the field name, county and sample number, that means you're one, two or three within this field and you can put your name in the tag too. So write in both tags the same information. So once you write the information you put one tag inside the bag and the other tag you use it to tie the bag but also we say give you a twine and just to make sure it gets tied we'll also use a twine to tie the bag. You have done already one square, then you go to the next one, again cut all the stems in that square, put them in the burlap sack, make sure you take both tags out, write the information, sampling date, county, field name, your name and the sample number whether it's one or two, this would be number two because it's the second sample or second square meter that you're sampling. Then again tie the tags, one goes inside once outside and tie with a twine and then you're done with a square. And after that you'll do the same for the third one with the low density and once you have those three squares you are done with the sampling. Once you've got the three samples the bags are ready and all tied up, you can take off the flags of the squares, taken with you because you will need them probably for the next sampling. Don't leave them in the field because if you have wire bag flags those are not good for the farmer to get in the bale. So take all the flags with you and bring the bags to your area specialist if you're working with one of them in your county or if you're not working with one of them send them directly to Fargo. Let me know when you're going to need them because I'll send you prepaid labels for shipping the bags. Once you're done with all your sampling and you have this spreadsheet it's going to look something like this. You're going to have for each plant you're going to have a number of stems on each one of the plants that you counted. Something like this. I'm just putting numbers here. If you have more than 15 plants in that square then just add columns to the sheet here and start writing the numbers. So there's a space for 15 but you have more just continue writing the numbers. Once you get back to your office you know you're going to have for each sample one, two and three you know the high density, low density and medium density okay. Once you get to your office you can just add all the columns and add the numbers. The formula it is already in the spreadsheet that sent you so automatically when you you type in all these numbers in here the total number of stems will show up here and the total number of plants will show up in this column. If you add columns you will have to modify the formulas and these cells so it adds those columns too to the total. Here is the explanation in the same spreadsheet what you have to do to change a formula for total stems or total plants if you add columns okay. Adding the you have to change to the last number of the column to be able to add that. But if you have some trouble just add the columns and the numbers and I will change a formula once you send me the data. So once you have all this information and you've already given the vex to your area agent or send me the vex please let me know you have any questions and I really appreciate that you're doing this for me this is a great project we're going to get good results so thanks a lot and don't hesitate to call me to my cell phone or send me an email. My cell phone is in the letter that is in each one of the sacs so you can call me immediately even if when you're in the field you can call me and let me know you have any questions thank you.