Palacios-Herrera, B.; Pereira-Lorenzo, S.; Pucha-Cofrep, D. Natural and Artificial Occurrence, Structure, and Abundance of Juglans neotropica Diels in Southern Ecuador. Agronomy2023, 13, 2531.
Palacios-Herrera, B.; Pereira-Lorenzo, S.; Pucha-Cofrep, D. Natural and Artificial Occurrence, Structure, and Abundance of Juglans neotropica Diels in Southern Ecuador. Agronomy 2023, 13, 2531.
Palacios-Herrera, B.; Pereira-Lorenzo, S.; Pucha-Cofrep, D. Natural and Artificial Occurrence, Structure, and Abundance of Juglans neotropica Diels in Southern Ecuador. Agronomy2023, 13, 2531.
Palacios-Herrera, B.; Pereira-Lorenzo, S.; Pucha-Cofrep, D. Natural and Artificial Occurrence, Structure, and Abundance of Juglans neotropica Diels in Southern Ecuador. Agronomy 2023, 13, 2531.
Abstract
This study investigated the presence and characteristics of Juglans neotropica in three ecosystems in Southern Ecuador: Montane Evergreen Forest, Evergreen Seasonal Lower Montane Forest, and Semideciduous Foot Montane Forest. The main focus was on the species' multipurpose nature as both a fruit and timber source. Six study sites, totaling at least 0.5 hectares each, were established, with four in Loja province and two in Zamora Chinchipe province.The results showed significant differences in dendrometric variables across the sites, with the most favorable growth recorded in The Tundo, where trees exhibited an average diameter at breast height (DBH) of 45.16 cm, basal area (G) of 1.41 m2, total height (TH) of 19.22 m, canopy height (CH) of 13 m, cubic volume (CV) of 3.55 m3, and total volume (TV) of 5.22 m3. The species displayed a clumped distribution pattern, as indicated by a Morisita index greater than 1. Regarding abundance, the highest density of 297 trees per hectare was found in Argelia, while Victoria had the lowest density of 46 trees per hectare. This research highlights the importance of Juglans neotropica as a multipurpose species, providing both valuable fruits and wood resources in the studied ecosystems of Southern Ecuador.
Keywords
Fruit; forest; ecosystem; wood; native; Ecuador
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Environmental Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
