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Growth of Secondary Forest in Puerto Rico Between 1980 and 1985

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Successive inventories in Puerto Rico provided the first estimates of secondary forest growth on a regional basis. The volume of growing stock trees increased by 32%, and timber volume by nearly 36%, on all classes of forest land between 1980 and 198.5. Timber volume growth rates (in m3ha-1yr-1 ) varied by forest class and averaged 2.0 in young secondary forest, 6.9 in advanced secondary forest, 7.1 in abandoned coffee shade forest, and 1.2 in active coffee shade forest. Tree diameter growth rates were weakly correlated with initial tree diameter (r2 = 0.16, n = 1090). A slight increase of valuable timber species and human intervention in more than half the forests were other trends recorded between surveys.

Citation

Weaver, P.L.; Birdsey, R.A. 1990. Growth of Secondary Forest in Puerto Rico Between 1980 and 1985. Turrialba Vol. 40, No. 1, 1990, pp. 12-22
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/5542