Caloric values and ash content of six dominant tree species in an evergreen broadleaf forest of Ailaoshan, Yunnan Province.

Abstract

To study the characteristic of the caloric value and ash content of dominant tree species in an evergreen broadleaf forest in Ailaoshan National Nature Reserve，Yunnan Province，the caloric value and ash content of six dominant tree species：Lithocarpus xylocarpus，Schima noronhae，Machilus bombycina，Ilex gintungensis，Camellia forrestii，and Castanopsis rufescens，were analyzed respectively on leaves，branches，trunks，trunk barks，and roots by sampling in the field and analyzing in the laboratory. Results showed ranges of gross caloric value of six dominant species were（in kJg-1） 19.0 － 23.41 for leaves，19.22 － 21.47 for branches，18.22 － 21.24 for trunk bark，19.32 － 21.27 for trunks，and 18.89 － 20.90 for roots. Tree gross caloric value ranked：L. xylocarpus ＞ S. noronhae ＞ M. bombycina ＞ I. gintungensis ＞ C. forrestii ＞ C. rufescens，whereas the rank of ash-free caloric values was：L. xylocarpus ＞ M. bombycina ＞ S. noronhae ＞ I. gintungensis ＞ C. rufescens ＞ C. forrestii. Both gross caloric values and ash-free caloric values were not consistent with the sequence of the importance value of these tree species. The caloric value were correlated remarkably with ash content （P＜0.01）.［Ch，4 tab. 22 ref.］