3.1.1 Carbon storage in trees
Concentrations of C did not vary significantly between species (S-N-K:P>0.05,MS=2.141,F=1.739,df=2)but the differences between different organs were significant (S-N-K:P>0.05,MS=32.778,F=13.457,df=3): the maximum concentrations were in leaves, followed, in that order, by woody stems, branches, and roots (Fig. 1). In the case of biomass, the differences were significant between species (SNK post hoc tests, P>0.05, MS=150.885, F=75.787, df = 2) and between organs (SNK post hoc tests, P>0.05, MS=3.191, F=2.747, df = 3), with one exception, namely that the species did not differ significantly in terms of their leaf biomass(SNK post hoc tests, P>0.05, MS=0.166, F=1.005, df = 2). The biomass of woody stems was maximum, followed, in that order, by that of branches, roots, and leaves (Fig. 2).
The conversion of biomass to carbon indicated that woody stems of all the tree species formed the largest pool of stored C, although the size of the pool differed significantly among the species (SNK post hoc tests, P>0.05, MS=20.464, F=32.922, df = 2). The size of the pool in the remaining organs was maximum in branches, followed, in that order, by roots and leaves (Table 2).