Biomass of native seedlings rescued from a Eucalyptus stand in different seasons of the year

Abstract

The biomass production of plants originating from natural regeneration may undergo seasonal changes throughout the year, conditioned to changes in climatic factors. In view of the above, the objective of the research was to know the changes that can occur in the biomass of Myrsine coriacea, Vernonia discolor, and Vernonanthura discolor seedlings regenerated under Eucalyptus reforestation, throughout the seasons and by height classes. For this, 36 seedlings of each species were collected quarterly, that is, 12 individuals from each of the following height classes: 5.0 to 25.9 cm; 26.0 to 49.9 cm; greater than or equal to 50.0 cm. On rescue occasions, the following measurements were performed: total height, collar diameter, aerial dry mass and root dry mass. From these variables, the relationship between aerial dry mass/aerial moisture mass and the relation between root dry mass/root moisture mass was calculated. The dry mass contents, as well as the relationship between dry and moisture mass of plants rescued from the three species showed differences in the seasons. Myrsine coriacea presented better performance in autumn, for most of the analyzed variables, while Vernonanthura discolor performed better in winter. As for Vernonia discolor, it was not possible to define a season of the year with better performance for most variables.