This dataset contains data collected within limestone cedar glades at Stones River National Battlefield (STRI) near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This dataset contains measurements of soil organic matter content (percent) at certain quadrat locations (points) within 12 selected cedar glades. These measurements were obtained according to the following protocol: (1) for each quadrat location (point), one soil sample was obtained under sterile conditions, using a trowel wiped with methanol and rinsed with distilled water, and was placed into an autoclaved jar with a tight-fitting lid and placed on ice, (2) soil samples were transported to lab facilities on ice and immediately refrigerated, (3) soil samples were transferred to clean aluminum trays and dried at 35 degrees Celcius for 48 hours to produce air-dry soil, (4) air-dry soils were then passed through a number10 sieve to remove rocks and root fragments, (5) sieved soils were transferred to crucibles and dried at 105 degrees Celcius for 2 hours to produce oven-dry soils, (6) the mass of oven-dry soils in crucibles was recorded, as was the mass of each empty oven-dry crucible (7) crucibles were then transferred to a Thermolyne type 1400 muffle furnace (Barnstead Thermolyne, Dubuque, IA, USA) and soils were combusted at 440 degrees Celcius for 24 hours, and (8) the organic matter fraction was calculated using the formula: OM = (OD-A)/OD, where OM is the organic matter fraction of soils, OD is the oven dry mass of soils, and A is the mass of ash after soils were combusted. The procedure used is known as the “loss on ignition” method of organic matter content determination, based on Ball (1964) and Davies (1973). Detailed descriptions of experimental design, field data collection procedures, laboratory procedures, and data analysis are presented in Cartwright (2014).References:Ball, D. (1964). Loss-on-ignition as an estimate of organic matter and organic carbon in non-calcareous soils. Journal of Soil Science, 15 (1), 84–92. Cartwright, J. (2014). Soil ecology of a rock outcrop ecosystem: abiotic stresses, soil respiration, and microbial community profiles in limestone cedar glades. Ph.D. dissertation, Tennessee State University.Cofer, M., Walck, J., and Hidayati, S. (2008). Species richness and exotic species invasion in Middle Tennessee cedar glades in relation to abiotic and biotic factors. The Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society, 135(4), 540–553.Davies, B. (1973). Loss-on-Ignition as an Estimate of Soil Organic Matter. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 38 (1), 150–151.