Biomass of Secondary Evergreen and Deciduous Broadleaved Mixed Forest in Plateau-type Karst Terrain of Guizhou Province, SW China

Abstract:

Using allometric functions, harvest and soil column methods, we investigated the biomass of a secondary evergreen and deciduous broadleaved mixed forest in Tianlongshan permanent monitoring plot (a horizontally-projected area of 2 hectares) of Puding Karst Ecosystem Research Station, Guizhou Province, southwestern China. Results showed that the total biomass of the forest is 165.4 Mg·hm^-2. The aboveground biomass and root biomass are 137.7 Mg·hm^-2 and 27.7 Mg·hm^-2, respectively. Among the aboveground biomass, the tree layer accounts for 97.76%, which is obviously greater than the shrub layer and herb layer. Larger trees (the diameter at breast height, DBH is between 5 cm and 20 cm) occupies 76.85% of the aboveground biomass, especially the five dominant species(Lithocarpus confinis, Platycarya longipes, Itea yunnanensis, Machilus cavaleriei and Carpinus pubescens). Shrubs and lianas (DBH = 1 cm) account for more than 30% of total shrub and liana biomass, although their individuals are less than 2% of total shrub individuals and 1% of total liana individuals, respectively. The root biomass differs in root diameters, i.e. coarse root > medium root > fine root. Root biomass decreases with the increase of soil depth. Within soil depth of 20 cm, the root biomass is 20.1 Mg·hm^-2, which is more than 70% of total root biomass. Within soil depth of 50 cm, the root biomass is 26.7 Mg·hm^-2, which is 96.39% of total root biomass. Compared with non-karst forests in the same climate zone, karst forest has lower biomass and carbon stock, but it further has greater potential of carbon sink.