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Allometric equations for estimating oil palm stem biomass in the ecological context of Benin, West Africa

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A Correction to this article was published on 15 December 2018

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Abstract

Key message

The models we developed used palm stem diameter at 1.5 m, stem density measured by core sampling at 1.5 m, and the height of the palm to estimate palm stem biomass.

Abstract

Allometric equations based on non-destructive methods were developed to estimate palm stem biomass. Twenty mature palms of different ages were subject to destructive and non-destructive measurements: stem height from the collar to the bottom of the frond at the 33rd position in the crown (frond 33), dry weight, the diameter and thickness of cylindrical slices sectioned at different heights along the stem, and the dry weight of samples of stem tissue taken from the core of each slice. The densities of the stem slices obtained using the destructive method (Dtrue) and the non-destructive method (Dcore) were linearly correlated: Dtrue = 1.062 × Dcore (R2 = 0.99) independently of the height, age and genetic origin of the palm. Stem density varied with height, reaching its maximum at around 1.5 m, after which it remained more or less constant to the top of the stem. Stem linear density (SLD) estimated from the product of the density and the section of the stem fell to a threshold value that remained more or less constant above 1.5 m. SLD between observed slices was estimated by interpolation based on a hyperbolic model to compute the true biomass of each palm. An equation derived from the integral of the hyperbolic model was fitted to estimate palm stem biomass as a function of wood density observed by non-destructive sampling at 1.5 m on the stem and of the diameter at the same height. With this equation, palm stem biomass can be estimated with an error of 5%.

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Change history

  • 15 December 2018

    The original article can be found online.

  • 15 December 2018

    The original article can be found online.

Notes

  1. ‘Dry volumetric mass’, referred to as ‘density’ in the rest of the article.

  2. S = 7.62T + 83; where S is the stem density (g/l) and T is the age of the palm (years).

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the institutions that provided material and financial support for this work, particularly the Oil Palm Research Center (Centre de Recherches Agricoles Plantes Pérennes CRAPP-Pobè/INRAB, Benin) and PalmElit which is a subsidiary of CIRAD (Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement) in Montpellier/France. The authors also thank all the technicians in the Agronomy Division of CRAPP-Pobè, for their support during field work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre de Recherches Agricoles Plantes Pérennes, Institut National des Recherches Agricoles du Bénin, BP 01, Pobè, Benin

    Hervé Nonwègnon Sayimi Aholoukpè

  2. CIRAD, UPR Systèmes de pérennes, 34398, Montpellier, France

    Bernard Dubos & Albert Flori

  3. CIRAD, UMR Eco&Sols (Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Biogéochimie des Sols et des Agro-écosystèmes) INRA-IRD-SupAgro-CIRAD, Place Viala, 34060, Montpellier Cedex 2, France

    Philippe Deleporte

  4. Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, FSA/UAC, BP 526, Cotonou, Benin

    Lucien Guillaume Amadji

  5. IRD, UMR Eco&Sols (Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Biogéochimie des Sols et des Agro-écosystèmes) INRA-IRD-SupAgro-CIRAD, Place Viala, 34060, Montpellier Cedex 2, France

    Jean-Luc Chotte & Didier Blavet

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  1. Hervé Nonwègnon Sayimi Aholoukpè
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  2. Bernard Dubos
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Correspondence to Hervé Nonwègnon Sayimi Aholoukpè.

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Aholoukpè, H.N.S., Dubos, B., Deleporte, P. et al. Allometric equations for estimating oil palm stem biomass in the ecological context of Benin, West Africa. Trees 32, 1669–1680 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-018-1742-8

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