Facilitating Regeneration of Secondary Forests with the Use of Mixed and Pure Plantations of Indigenous Tree Species
background
This research presents the abundance and diversity of woody species regenerating under tropical plantations (mixed and single-species) and a control of natural regeneration at La Selva Biological Station in the Atlantic humid lowlands of Costa Rica.
Research Goals & Methods
The experiment site included plantations cleared in the 1950s, grazed until the 1980s and then abandonded. The plantions were manually cleared and slash was left on the floor. The site was planted in November 1992; the plantations were 7 years old when this research was conducted. Plantation plots were in randomized blocks, with four replicates of six treatments.
Conclusions & Takeaways
The greatest abundance of seedlings and saplings was found in the mixed plantation (10,156 individuals/ha) and the plantation of Hieronyma alchorneoides (7891 individuals/ha). The highest diversity of tree species was found in the mixed plantation (11.2 species in 32 square meters) and Vochysia ferruginea plantation (8.2 species in 32 square meters). The natural regeneration plot (control) had the lowest abundance and diversity of tree species with only 703 individuals/ha and 0.7 species per 32 square meters. There was significant correlation between number of individuals and degree of canopy shading. The author's hypothesis that tree species diversity will be more in mixed plantations than pure species plantations (and natural regeneration plots) was upheld by the results of this study.
Reference:
Facilitating regeneration of secondary forests with the use of mixed and pure plantations of indigenous tree species. Forest Ecology and Management. 2002;163:217–227. doi:10.1016/s0378-1127(01)00581-3.
.Affiliation:
- National University of Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina Management and Conservation of Forests and Biodiversity
- Centro Agronomico Tropical de Investigacion y Ensenanza (CATIE)