21  Patty and Nora Check-in 15MAY2024

Date: Wednesday, May 15, 2024

21.1 Attendees

• Nora Pearson
• Patty Burns

21.2 Project Updates

21.2.1 Field Work Progress

• Team has been conducting field sampling at various sites
• Currently working on campus research plots for a cardboard mulch project
• Weather conditions have been favorable for fieldwork (70°F, partly cloudy!)

21.2.2 GIS Work

Patty provided an update on her GIS work:

• Working on smoothing out the Area of Interest (AOI) boundary
• Addressing issues with odd jogs and legs in the boundary
• Using a combination of methods:
  • Following roads for squared-off boundaries
  • Tracing polygon edges for natural boundaries (e.g., large organic units)
  • Adjusting marsh lines based on imagery

21.2.3 Action Items:

• Patty: Continue refining AOI boundary
• Patty: Review boundary changes with Joe for approval

21.3 Pedon Description Form Updates

Nora provided feedback on the updated pedon description form:

21.3.1 Positive Feedback

• Front page (site-level information) is much clearer and easier to follow
• Circling options for 2D hillslope profile position and 3D geomorphic component is helpful
• Field notes and sketch boxes provide sufficient space
• Three lines for matrix color are useful
• Redox features and concentrations columns are greatly improved
• Artifacts page is easy to follow and provides ample space

21.3.2 Areas for Improvement

• Gray shading on the back page can be difficult to read in bright sunlight with light pencil marks
• Team discussed potential for adding a notes column for each horizon row

21.3.3 Action Items:

• Nora: Test printing the form in color to see if it improves readability (update: it fixed the readability problem)
• Patty: Consider options for adding a notes column without disrupting the current layout

21.4 Data Management

21.4.1 Box Folder Organization

Nora updated the team on changes to the Box folder structure:

• Removed zip files for easier access to PDFs and photos
• Users can now view documents directly in Box without downloading
• Shapefiles and other GIS data remain in zipped folders

21.4.2 Action Items:

• Nora: Add Joe Brennan to the Box folder with editor access
• Nora: Continue updating the Box folder at least weekly, ideally more frequently
• Patty: Check if Joe can access the Box folder and inform Nora if there are any issues

21.5 Kickoff Meeting Planning

The team briefly discussed the upcoming project kickoff meeting:

• Scheduled for two weeks from the meeting date
• Agenda is mostly finalized
• Some speaker assignments still need to be confirmed

21.5.1 Action Items:

• Nora: Update the agenda to include her name for relevant speaking parts
• Patty: Check with Joe about who will give the DSM talk
• Patty: Inform Nora of any last-minute agenda changes from Joe

21.6 Detailed Discussion Notes

21.6.1 Pedon Description Form Feedback

Nora provided specific feedback on the updated pedon description form:

1. Front Page (Site-level Information):
   • Much clearer and easier to follow
   • Clear distinction between pre-filled sections and areas requiring input
   • 2D and 3D geomorphic component sections with circling options are particularly helpful
2. Back Page (Horizon-specific Information):
   • Three lines for matrix color are very useful
   • Gray shading helps differentiate horizons but can be difficult to read in bright sunlight
   • Redox features and concentrations columns are greatly improved
3. Artifacts Page:
   • Easy to follow
   • Provides ample space for descriptions
   • Circling options for artifact characteristics (e.g., roundness, shape, cohesion) are helpful

21.6.2 Potential Form Improvements

The team discussed possible additions to the form:

1. Notes Column:
   • Considered adding a notes column for each horizon row
   • Decided against it to maintain the current two-page layout
   • Will use existing spaces (e.g., miscellaneous field notes, boundary column) for additional notes
2. Sample Number:
   • Discussed adding a dedicated space for sample numbers
   • Decided to use the boundary column when not describing boundaries
   • Nora: “We use that yesterday to write the sample number. And that was perfect.”
3. Roots and Pores Columns:
   • Decided to keep the roots column despite auger disturbance
   • Pores column can be used for additional notes when not describing pores

21.6.3 Box Folder Organization

Nora explained the changes made to the Box folder structure:

• PDFs and photos are now directly accessible without downloading
• Intended to streamline the review process for Patty and Joe
• GIS data (shapefiles, etc.) remain in zipped folders for easier transfer

Nora noted: “Hopefully that’s easier for you to use. Because you don’t have to constantly be downloading zipped files. You can just like click on a PDF or click on a photo and it loads it right in box without you downloading it to your computer.”

21.6.4 Data Update Schedule

Nora committed to a regular update schedule for the Box folder:

• Minimum weekly updates, ideally more frequent
• Current on pedon description sheets, but behind on photo uploads
• Will aim to update photos to match the latest pedon descriptions

21.6.5 Kickoff Meeting Preparations

The team briefly discussed the upcoming project kickoff meeting:

• Scheduled for two weeks from the meeting date
• Agenda is mostly finalized, with some speaker assignments to be confirmed
• Nora will update the agenda to include her name for relevant speaking parts
• Patty will check with Joe about who will give the DSP talk

21.7 Next Steps

1. Continue field sampling at secured sites
2. Refine AOI boundary and review changes with Joe
3. Test color printing of pedon description form and assess readability
4. Ensure Joe Brennan has access to the Box folder
5. Finalize kickoff meeting agenda and speaker assignments