Table 2.
Statistical (GLMM) analysis of decomposition rate in relation to the fixed factors farm, bush species, litter type and sampling day
| Factor | df | F | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farm | 14.6 | 2.75 | 0.1183 |
| Bush species | 14.6 | 2.38 | 0.1440 |
| Bush species × Farm | 14.6 | 4.18 | 0.0593 |
| Litter type | 29.5 | 1,108.4 | <0.0001 |
| Litter type × Bush species | 29.5 | 0.06 | 0.9411 |
| Litter type × Farm | 29.5 | 2.82 | 0.0756 |
| Litter type × Bush species × Farm | 29.5 | 2.71 | 0.0833 |
| Sampling day | 77.1 | 30.84 | <0.0001 |
| Sampling day × Bush species | 77.1 | 0.87 | 0.4212 |
| Sampling day × Farm | 77.1 | 0.88 | 0.4178 |
| Sampling day × Bush species × Farm | 77.1 | 1.27 | 0.2873 |
| Litter type × Sampling day | 79.2 | 13.69 | <0.0001 |
| Litter type × Bush species × Sampling day | 79.2 | 0.39 | 0.8169 |
| Litter type × Farm × Sampling day | 79.2 | 0.53 | 0.7170 |
| Litter type × Bush species × Farm × Sampling day | 79.2 | 1.25 | 0.2971 |
The table shows the results from a General Linear Mixed Model analysis of the decomposition constant (k values in Table 1) in relation to the fixed factors Farm, Bush species (i.e. the bush species under which litters were placed; G. africana or E. rhinocerotis), Litter type (i.e. the litter collected from the three species G. africana, E. rhinocerotis or W. borbonica) and Sampling day (65, 131 or 182 days from the start of the experiment)