Allometry, Biomass and Productivity of Quercus Forests in Korea: A Literature-based Review

Abstract

Publications with the data on allometric equation, biomass and productivity of major oak forests in Korea were reviewed. Different allometric equations of major oak species showed site- or speciesspecific dependences. The biomass of major oak forests varied with age, dominant species, and location. Aboveground tree biomass over the different oak species was expressed as a power equation of the stand age. The proportion of tree component (stem, branch and leaf) to total aboveground biomass differed among oak species, however, biomass ranked stem > branch > leaf in general. The leaf biomass allocation over the different oak species was expressed as a power equation of total aboveground biomass while there were no significant patterns of biomass allocation from stem and branch to the aboveground biomass. Tree root biomass continuously increased with the aboveground biomass for the major oak forests. The relationship between the root to shoot ratio and the aboveground tree biomass was expressed by a logarithmic equation for major oak forests in Korea. Thirteen sets of data were used for estimating the net primary production (NPP) and net ecosystem production (NEP) of oak forests. The mean NPP and NEP across different oak forests was 10.2 and 1.9 Mg C ha−1year−1. The results in biomass allocation, NPP and NEP generally make Korean oak forests an important carbon sinks.