Abstract
Measuring plant height (y) and canopy diameter (x) in trees may not be an easy task, but stem diameter (z) can be more easily evaluated. This work's objective was two-fold: evaluate the growth of species adapted to the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region in the first two years of age, and obtain linear equations to estimate y and x from z, in those species. A random block design with four replications was employed. The values for x, z, and y were measured biannually from October/2003 to March/2005. Prosopis juliflora and Mimosa caesalpiniaefolia showed the highest stem diameter and plant height values, respectively, and both showed the highest canopy diameter. In the equations to estimate plant height from the stem diameter the value of the coefficient of determination (R²) ranged from 0.76 (Tamarindus indica and Leucaena leucocephala) to 0.92 (Prosopis juliflora and Azadirachta indica). In the equations that allowed to estimate the crown diameter from the stem diameter the R² value ranged from 0.70 (Leucaena leucocephala) to 0.92 (Azadirachta indica).
Highlights
The Semi-Arid Region of Northeastern Brazil covers an estimated area which represents nearly 10% of the Brazilian territory
The main vegetation type is deciduous thorn forest or thor bush savanna known as Caatinga (Sampaio et al 1995)
A typical ecosystem from the Northeastern region of Brazil, classified as top priority for preservation projects in Latin America and the Caribbean Islands, the Caatinga is a unique biome in the world
Summary
The Semi-Arid Region of Northeastern Brazil covers an estimated area which represents nearly 10% of the Brazilian territory. A typical ecosystem from the Northeastern region of Brazil, classified as top priority for preservation projects in Latin America and the Caribbean Islands, the Caatinga is a unique biome in the world. It encompasses a 800 thousand km area, including the States of the Northeastern region of Brazil, in addition to the northern part of the. Despite its importance for mankind, the Caatinga region of Brazil is seriously threatened by desertification, at the same time that an increase in productivity is required to provide support to a growing population in search of development. The reasons for the desertification of the Caatinga are not different from those normally found in other areas of the world
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