Full Product Manual

Table Of Contents
Density Factor
The density factor indicates how densely the plants are placed in the hydrozone.
As the density of the plants increases, so does the density factor.
In the top portion of the worksheet’s “density factor” box, indicate the approxi-
mate range of the plant’s density factor: low, average, or high. Later, you can
assign a value to the density factor, using Table 4-3 as a guideline.
EXAMPLE
Assume that you have a hydrozone planted only with shrubs that require a
great deal of water. If you locate the “Shrubs” row in Table 4-2 and read across
to the “High” column, you’ll find that the species factor is 0.7. “High” would
be entered in the top half of the species factor box on the worksheet and
“0.7” would be entered in the bottom half of the species factor box.
Page 22 Chapter 4
Species Factor
The species factor is an adjustment to PET that reflects the amount of water that a
particular species of plant needs relative to turf grass. The range can be from 0.2
for plants like cactus and succulents that require little water, up to 0.9 for plants
like ferns that require a great deal of water.
On the dense hydrozone worksheet (Figure 4-1, page 20), indicate the estimated
range of the plant’s species factor: “low,” “average” or “high” based on Table 4-2
below. Note this in the top portion of the “species factor” box. Later, you can
assign a numerical value to the species factor, again using Table 4-2 as a guideline.
TABLE 4-2: ESTIMATED SPECIES FACTORS
Plant Type Low Average High
Trees 0.2 0.5 0.9
Shrubs 0.2 0.5 0.7
Ground covers 0.2 0.5 0.7
Mixed trees, shrubs, ground covers 0.2 0.5 0.9
TABLE 4-3: ESTIMATED DENSITY FACTORS
Plant Type Low Average High
Trees 0.5 1.0 1.3
Shrubs 0.5 1.0 1.1
Ground covers 0.5 1.0 1.1
Mixed trees, shrubs, ground cover 0.6 1.1 1.3
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