On Wednesday 18^th September, Year 13 Biologists fuelled up with caffeine at Hagen and headed down the District Line to a sunny Kew Gardens for a day of ecology fieldwork. We counted the species of plants present in grassland to determine how biodiversity is affected by different management regimes, for example regular mowing versus annual mowing, and how biological factors such as the presence of a large shade tree affect biodiversity. It was certainly a challenge trying to identify all the different plants, especially when they had recently been mown!

We also learnt how to use a range of instruments to measure variables that could affect plant growth, such as soil temperature, moisture, acidity, depth and compaction. We found that the soil in part of Kew Gardens is surprisingly acidic, allowing a very different and diverse collection of plants to flourish in that area. We also took some time to explore other areas of Kew, including the monkey puzzle grove and the vast temperate house. 14,000 steps later we were back at Sloane Square!

Dr Marshall, Biology Teacher