Soil Sample Collecting 9.5.18

Rationale)

To collect a soil sample, under the premise of our newly defined scientific question, from age established oak trees so that we can compare the presence of arthrobacteriophage between the types of trees that I collected from and recently transplanted trees on campus. We will eventually ascertain a lysate from this soil sample in order that we can test it through both spot tests and plaque assays for the presence of phage, in order to test our question.

Scientific Question)

What is the difference in the amount of bacteriophage present between the soil surrounding newly planted trees versus the trees that are well established?

Procedures)

1. We developed a testable scientific question specific to our table group involving both bacteriophages and trees.

2. I then went and collected a soil sample using a plastic bag from a well established live oak tree, with the soil being collected without my hand coming into contact it. I also collected a sample of the leaves of the tree and placed them in the bag. I labeled the bag 9.5.18 NMN Soil B + Leaves.

3. I proceeded to record observations/metadata about the tree from which I took Sample B and put it into the Tree Metadata Survey in Canvas for later use.

4. Back in the lab, I transferred about 2mL of soil from the bag to a 15mL conical vial without coming into contact with the soil. I labeled the vial Soil B NMN 9.5.18. I then placed the vial back into the bag and returned the bag and its contents to be stored in the refrigerator by the TAs for use on Monday.

Observations/Metadata)

I observed that the tree from which I gathered my sample was roughly 20m high and roughly 25m across, the trunk was also significantly larger than 200cm all of which indicates that the tree has been growing for a very long time. It is, therefore, reasonable to assume that the tree is very established and fits our target tree in regards to our scientific question. I also observed that the tree was a Live Oak, additionally, the soil surrounding the tree was moist and fairly compacted and the tree itself was healthy will no evidence of damage.

Conclusion/Next-Steps)

From the conversations we initially had we were able to develop a testable scientific question from which we can design an experiment to test. The sample, Soil B, we collected will allow us to test this question as the next steps in this process will be to isolate direct and enriched isolations from lysates produced from Soil B, which will eventually allow us to determine the presence of bacteriophages via plaque assays and spot tests. From this information, we will then be able to begin answering our question regarding the amount of bacteriophage present in recently planted trees versus those that are well established.