Wood basic density of trees in restoration forests: effect on biomass and carbon estimates

• Grant number: 21/13251-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2022
• End date: December 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Forestry Resources and Forestry Engineering - Nature Conservation
• Principal Investigator: Vera Lex Engel
• Grantee: João Paulo Rodrigues Leite
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agronômicas (FCA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Basic wood density is an important predictor variable in biomass and carbon estimation protocols of forest ecosystems. However, wood density data for young trees, which is the case of forests in restoration, are still scarce, affecting the accuracy of estimates. We aimed to evaluate the error contained in biomass estimates when differences in basic wood density between young and adult trees are not considered. We will evaluate the variation of basic wood density in individuals from 23-year-old restoration forests, and individuals of the same species in native forests, checking for overlapping of database values with the confidence intervals for the density estimate obtained in this study. To obtain the basic wood density data, two sites will be used, with about 3.75 ha each, where experiments to restore the seasonal semideciduous forest have been established between 1997-1998. All species with at least 3 individuals with a DAP e 10 cm will be sampled. From the selected species, core samples from the bark to the pith will be collected, with the aid of a Pressler Probe. The basic wood density values will be obtained by the gravimetric method. The species will be grouped by multivariate methods, regarding wood density. For species listed in databases and directories, the basic wood density values will be compared with those obtained in this experiment. Estimates of the error embedded in the biomass and carbon estimates when real wood density values are not used will be made, based on equations in the literature.(AU)