Quantification of biomass and carbon stock in a hop cultivation in the state of São Paulo

• Grant number: 24/15465-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2024
• End date: October 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Agricultural Meteorology
• Principal Investigator: Valeria Cristina Rodrigues Sarnighausen
• Grantee: Mariana dos Santos Hypólito
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agronômicas (FCA). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Driven by the growing consumption and production of beer in Brazil, hops (Humulus lupulus) have become increasingly important in this context. Its flower, the cone, is essential for providing desirable characteristics to the final product, such as aromatic properties, physicochemical stability, antimicrobial action, and antioxidants, among others. This climbing herbaceous plant exhibits intense vegetative growth, allowing its production not only to meet the internal demand for beer but also to act as a means of carbon sequestration, contributing to the sustainability of the production process. Therefore, the present project aims to quantify the biomass generated during two cycles of the plant and identify the carbon stock of each cycle using allometric equations and scatter plots. In this method, the relationship between biomass (kg) and biometric measurements of the plants is depicted. For this, the project relies on weekly measurements of variables such as diameter and height, and destructive analyses to determine the carbon content present in the dry biomass. The results obtained will be statistically evaluated. Finally, based on the results, the project intends to contribute to the application of carbon sequestration estimates to hop cultivation areas, offering relevant information for producers and investors.