Plant Monitoring Observations - Assigned Plots for Sampling

In Terraware, plant monitoring post-planting is done through Observations, which involve tracking live plant species within assigned monitoring plots in a forestry project's planting areas and using the plot data and a sampling methodology to determine plant density and survival rates.

Observation data is recorded in the field using the Terraware mobile app. (For more information about the Terraware mobile app, visit Mobile App Features.) The Observation data is synced to the Terraware web app, where statistics related to the status of the planting site can be viewed within the Observation details and Plants Dashboard.

Assigned Plot Observations vs. Ad Hoc Plot Observations

Observations that are scheduled, and for which monitoring plots, including the number of plots and their locations, are determined by Terraware, are Assigned Plot Observations. This article covers how to schedule and conduct Plant Monitoring Observations with assigned plots.

Observations that are conducted on-demand and/or for which the monitoring plot locations are user-determined, are Ad Hoc Plot Observations. To learn more about Ad Hoc Plot Observations, visit Ad Hoc Plot Observations.

Note: Users who are part of the Terraformation Accelerator Program will use Assigned Plot Plant Monitoring Observations for MRV activities post-planting. 

Plant Monitoring Observations with Assigned Plots

Observations that include Terraware-determined monitoring plots are scheduled in the Terraware web app.

These Observations can be scheduled by organization admins and managers for planting sites that have had plants allocated to them. Plants are allocated to planting sites in Terraware through seedling withdrawals to planting sites. (For more information about seedling withdrawals, visit Seedling Withdrawal.)

Plant Monitoring Observations are meant to be started after a planting season for the planting site is completed. (To learn about plant monitoring best practices, including when to start Observations, visit Plant Monitoring Best Practices with Terraware.) 

Once a planting site has had plants allocated to it, the Observations link will be available in the left navigation.

Location of Observations in Terraware

To schedule an Observation:

1. In the Observations screen, click Schedule Observation
   1. Note: Schedule Observation will only appear when there is at least one planting site that has plants allocated to it.
2. In the Schedule Observations screen, select the following for the Observation
   1. Planting Site for which you would like to schedule an observation
      1. Check the "Limit observation" checkbox to limit the observation to specific subzones only. When checked, only the subzones with plants will be selected by default.
         1. Check and uncheck specific subzones, as needed
   2. Observation Start Date 
      1. Note: Observations can be scheduled for up to a year in advance.
   3. Observation End Date
      1. Note: Observations periods cannot exceed two months.
3. Click Save to schedule the Observation
   1. A message about the scheduled observation will appear in the Observations page. 

To edit and/or reschedule an Observation:

1. In the Observations screen, find the message about the scheduled observation and click Reschedule
2. In the Schedule Observations screen, select new values for the fields, as needed
3. Click Save to save the changes to the Observation

Observation Status

When an Observation for a planting site is scheduled, members of your organization will see a notification in Terraware about the scheduled observation.

When the scheduled start date of an Observation arrives, the Observation will be started. The Observation will appear in the Observations table, and its status will be "In Progress." 

When the Observation's end date has passed, and it has not yet been completed, its status will be "Overdue."

When the Observation has been completed, its status will be "Completed." 

Viewing scheduled Observations in a notice above the table; Viewing In Progress Observations in the table

Monitoring Plots

Only after an Observation is started and its status is "In Progress", the monitoring plots for the observation will be assigned by Terraware. Once an Observation is started, a CSV file of the coordinates of the monitoring plots will be available to download to use for planning monitoring activities.

To download the locations of plots for Observations:

1. In the Observations table, click the More menu for the "In Progress" Observation
2. In the More menu, click Export Locations
3. A CSV file will be downloaded automatically with the filename convention <planting-site-name>-<observation-year-month-day>.csv

Using Export Locations to download a CSV of coordinates of monitoring plots 

The monitoring plots are numbered sequentially across all planting sites in your Organization.

The locations of the monitoring plots will be viewable in the Map of the planting site in the Observations page. 

Viewing monitoring plots in a map for an Observation in the Terraware web app

The coordinates of the locations of the monitoring plots will also be viewable in the mobile app to users conducting Observations within those plots.

Monitoring plots for an observation will be either permanent plots or temporary plots. The size of each of the monitoring plots will be 30x30 meters.

Permanent plots will be monitored with every observation cycle for the entire length of a project and will help with seeing changes in the land over time. New temporary plots will be assigned for each observation. Temporary plots help to get a sense of the health of the planting site without needing to monitor the entire site.

If any assigned plots need to be reassigned for various reasons, such as a plot is in an inaccessible location, use the Request Reassignment feature (accessible in the kebab menu for each plot in the Monitoring Plot table). Terraware will assign a new location for the plot.

For more information about monitoring plots, visit Planting Site Monitoring FAQ.

Conducting Observations

Observations are conducted using the Terraware mobile app.

To conduct a Plant Monitoring Observation that has been scheduled, use the Assigned Plot Observations feature in the mobile app. Only Observations that have been scheduled, are not yet completed, and/or have not yet been uploaded to the Terraware server will appear in the Assigned Plots list.

Access Assigned Plot Observations in the Terraware mobile app

Claiming Plots

Before a plot can be monitored, it will need to be claimed in the mobile app on a device that is connected to the internet. Once a plot is claimed by a user, it will not be able to be claimed or monitored by any other users. The status of the plot will change from Outstanding to In Progress; the same status is noted for the Planting Site Zone in which the plot is located. Multiple users can monitor their claimed plots at the same time, even within the same planting sites.

To claim a monitoring plot:

1. In the Get Ready to Monitor screen, read about what you need to begin monitoring, and click Start to begin
2. In the Claim Plots screen, follow the instructions to select the plots that you plan to monitor by clicking on the points that designate the plots in the map
3. After you have selected all of the plots that you plan to monitor, click Confirm to claim the plots
4. In the Go to Site screen, read about whether you will need to set up boundaries for any of your claimed plots, and click Next to continue to the next step

Claiming a plot in the Terraware mobile app

Setting up Plot Boundaries

The first time that a plot is monitored, the user who claimed the plot will be required to set up the plot boundary in the mobile app. The coordinates of each of the four corners - southwest, northwest, northeast, northwest - will be provided in the mobile app. 

The mobile app guides the user through physically marking the 4 corners of each monitoring plot to form the boundary. The user will be asked to drive stakes into the ground at the corners and take photos of the plot from each corner, facing toward the center of the plot. 

To set up plot boundaries:

1. In the Select Plot screen, select the plot by clicking on the point designating the plot in the map
2. In the screen with the plot details, click Confirm to start setting up the plot boundary
3. In the Boundary Check screen, click Create Boundary to continue with recording the physical setup of the plot boundary
   1. Note: If you click Skip to skip creating a boundary, you will not need to go through the steps of marking the plot boundary, but you will still be required to take photos from each corner of the plot.
4. In the Select Starting Corner screen, click on one of the corners of the plot in the map to select it as the starting point for setting up the boundary, and click Confirm to start with marking that corner
5. In the corner Marker screen, go to the location at the coordinates that are displayed for the corner, and physically mark that corner. Then click Next to continue.
   1. Note: If the app detects that the device's GPS accuracy is low, a warning will be displayed that prompts the user to wait until it improves before starting. It can take anywhere from seconds to a few minutes before the GPS settles and you can rely on the location on-screen.
6. After marking the corner, you will need take a photo from the corner, facing the center of the plot to record the marking. Click Open Camera to use your device's camera to take the photo.
7. Next, you will need to create a boundary between the corner you just marked and the next corner that you will mark. The coordinates of the next corner will be displayed so that you know where the boundary should end and where to mark the next corner. The diagram in the Marker Boundary screen will show you the direction in which to go. When you are finished with creating the boundary, click Next to continue.
8. Repeat steps 5 through 7 until you have finished setting up the plot boundary. You will see a Setup Complete screen when you are done and can start plant tracking within the plot.
   1. Note: Once you have completed the plot setup steps, whether you continue to plant tracking or come back later to start tracking, you will not have to complete the same plot setup steps again.

Setting up a plot boundary in the Terraware mobile app

Plant Tracking

Once the plot boundary has been marked, the user can begin counting (also known as tracking) the plants within the monitoring plot. The numbers of plants - live and dead - are recorded in the Terraware mobile app by their species. 

After starting tracking for a plot, the user will not be able to pause and come back to complete tracking without restarting the process.

To track plants:

1. In the Tracking screen, all of the species that had been planted in the planting site will appear in the list, with the ability to mark live and dead plants for each. As you conduct monitoring in the plot, record the number of Live and Dead plants for each species
   1. Note: When you increment plant numbers, you will have the opportunity to undo the increment right after. The ability to undo an increment disappears after a few seconds, and you will not be able to change the incremented number.
   2. Note: The first time that a plot is monitored, you will have the option to record existing plants. These are the plants that pre-existed your planting activities.
2. While tracking, if you observe a plant species that is not in the list, select Live or Dead in the Other option and provide the species name.
   1. The species will appear in the list in the Tracking screen
3. While tracking, if you observe a plant for which you can't identify the species, select Live or Dead in the Can't Tell option
4. When you have completed tracking all of the plants in the monitoring plot, click Done
   1. A summary of the statistics for the plot observation will be surfaced in the app. Check that the numbers appear to be correct, and click Save Plot Tracking to complete the observation of this plot.
5. In the Plot Tracking Summary screen, if you observed any of a list of things related to the state of the plot while you were tracking, select the things. Add a note, if needed. Click Save to save all of the recorded tracking data for the plot. 

Plant data to record during plot monitoring

Uploading Monitoring Data

After tracking data for monitoring plots are recorded, the user will need to upload the data for it to appear in Terraware. A notice to "Upload Monitoring Data" will appear at the top of the Plant Monitoring screen in the mobile app.

Uploading monitoring data requires an internet connection and can take some time, even on a fast internet connection, due to the amount of data and photos that are being uploaded. All data that had been saved and not yet uploaded will be uploaded when you perform the upload. Be sure that you have enough time to complete the upload without interruptions before beginning an upload of more than a few plots’ worth of data. 

Once a monitoring plot's data has been uploaded, the status of the plot will change from In Progress to Completed; the same status is noted for the Planting Site Zone in which the plot is located.

To upload monitoring data:

1. In the Plant Monitoring screen where the "Upload Monitoring Data" notice appears, click Upload Monitoring Data
2. As soon as you click Upload Monitoring Data the upload of the data will start. When it is finished, you will be returned to the Plant Monitoring screen, and the "Upload Monitoring Data" notice will no longer appear.

Uploading monitoring data in the Terraware mobile app

Once the data has been uploaded, it will be available to view in Terraware.

Viewing Observation Data

Individual plot observation data can be viewed in Observations. Observation data is surfaced for planting sites at the stratum/zone level and monitoring plot level.

Note: If an Observation is conducted in areas that are not yet marked as Planting Complete, Terraware will not calculate the planting density. And the planting density will not be available in the Observations tables or in the Plants Dashboard. 

Observation data in the Terraware web app

To view Observation data:

1. In the Observations page, in the Observations table, click the date of the Observation for which you would like to see data
2. In the Zone table, click the name of the Zone for which you would like to see Observation data
3. In the Monitoring Plot table, click the name of the plot for which you like to see Observation data

Observation data will not appear in the Plants Dashboard until it has been Ended. (To learn more about the Plants Dashboard, visit Plants Dashboard.)

If there is a need to end an Observation before all plots have been observed, you can do so.

Numbers shown in Observations:

• Total Plants: Total Plants is the number of all observed plants, including plants recorded as live and dead. Plants recorded as pre-existing are not included.
• Live Plants: Live Plants is the number of observed plants recorded as live. Plants recorded as pre-existing are not included.
• Dead Plants: Dead Plants is the number of observed plants recorded as dead.
• Species: Species is the number of species represented by all of the observed plants, including plants recorded as pre-existing.
• Plant Density: Plant Density (plants per hectare) is calculated based on the number of observed plants recorded as live. Plants recorded as pre-existing are not included.
• Survival Rate: Survival Rate is calculated based on the specified initial plant density and the number of observed plants recorded as live. Plants recorded as pre-existing or which species are unknown or are not in the Species list are not included.

To end an In Progress Observation:

1. In the Observations table, click the More menu for the "In Progress" Observation
2. In the More menu, click End Observation
3. In the End Observation screen, click End Observation

Ending Observations prior to observing all monitoring plots