arcgis desktop - create diversity map of qualitative features, ArcMap

I am trying to create a map of forest type diversity with ArcMap. I have a polygon forest layer with the different forest types as attributes (e.g. 0815, 0862, 0813, ..., which stands for 'mixed forest', 'oak forest', and so on.)

Using Patch Analyst I have created a Hexagon map and intersected it with the forest polygon layer. Usually I would now use 'field statistics' to calculate the variance of forest types for each Hexagon field and then join the result table to the Hexagon polygon layer to create a diversity map. Calculations don't work, however, since I have qualitative Features instead of quantitative ones.

Does somebody have an idea how to do this?

Answer

I solved the Problem:

1. dissolve forest data according to forest type


2. create Hexagons


3. join forest data to Hexagon ('spatial join')

--> this gives me what I want, in the new table there is a Count_ field that Displays not the number of Polygons, but the number of different forest types in the hexagon