A Ph.D student approached me last year about my property. Her group was doing a study about unused agricultural land and the feasibility of using it as tree plantations for the lumber industry.
She showed me a large, color photogragh of the area taken by satellite. She asked if I would be interested in having my property be part of the study. I agreed and two days later a group of them showed up and started documenting the species of vegetation, taking soil samples, taking digital photograghs, etc.
A year goes by and I get a phone call from this student. Phase 2 of the study is underway and she wants to meet with me to ask me some questions. I invite her to my house and I answer her survey. At the end, she hands me a folder and says "this is for you."
Inside:
- a summary of the project
- soil analysis, including %clay, %loam, %sand and ph level.
- a list of all plants sampled (34), the concentration found in the sampled areas, and the sampled plant's stage of life.
- a photocopy of the satellite photo of my property
- and the GPS plot locations of where the samples were taken.
Actually it's only been mine for 4 years, and I'm in the process of renewing it. I've started mowing the field. Next is to yank out the trash trees (mostly boxelder). Disking and reseeding after that and then finally - fencing.
I told her all of this before she started, but she said it didn't matter.
I'm just happy to have a copy of the data that was collected.