Auxin

A plant hormone (also known as a growth regulator) which can respond to environmental conditions to increase and develop cell growth.

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  Axil

The angle between the upper leaf surface or leaf stem and the plant stem or a larger stem.

  Bacteria

Microscopic organisms having a single cell, which lack mitochondria and a nucleus, although they do contain a single DNA molecule called a nucleoid.

  Base Saturation

The percentage of exchangeable cations that are called base cations, meaning they are non-acidic in their reactions. These cations are typically grouped as Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, and Sodium.

  Baseline Study

An assessment which is carried out before the start of project development work that identifies and describes relevant conditions (such as environmental, social, financial), and appropriate measurable indicators against which changes to conditions can be referenced due to any future activities. Information which is discovered by the baseline study can be used to inform and influence planning, as well as processes and procedures of the development work, including ongoing monitoring of progress made as well as the end of project evaluation.

  Basidiomycetes

A name previously used to mean Basiodiomycota.

  Basidiomycota

A division, or phylum, of the Fungi Kingdom. Spores (called basidiospores) are produced from a club-shaped structure called a basidium, typically developing on gills of mushrooms/toadstools, and are dispersed from these structures. There are approximately 3,500 species of Basidiomycota in the British Isles.

  Bearding

A build-up of grass leaf material and residue on a cylinder. This is a result of grass blades which have not been cut cleanly due to either an incorrect setting of the bottom blade to cylinder, a relatively blunt cylinder and or bottom blade (which will need sharpening / regrinding), or where a cylinder mower is used to cut grass which is too long for the setting, or just too long for using cylinder mowers, especially in wet conditions. The result is effectively a tearing and squashing-stretching of some of the grass instead of providing a nice clean cut.

  Belt Transect

These are line transects with the use of quadrats placed continuously along the line; there is also a variation called the ladder transect, typically alternating between a quadrat then a space the equivalent of a quadrat then another quadrat. Advantages • Accuracy of data being more representative of plants. • Comprehensive data collected. • Used for soil sampling. Disadvantages • Time consuming. • More costly. • Not as suitable for thinly populated areas.

  Biennial

A plant that completes its life cycle in two years. A plant will typically establish itself in the first year by producing leaves and stems; whilst in the second year it will flower, seed and then die. A biennial is also sometimes used to describe a short-lived perennial. This life cycle is not the most common in plants, but examples include: • Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea). • Wallflower (Erysimum cheiri). • Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus).