Crescimento, morfometria e densidade da madeira de espécies arbóreas em sistema agroflorestal com cafeeiro

Abstract

This work is structured in two parts: the first provides a general overview of the topic studied, while the second comprises three scientific articles. The overall objective of the research was to evaluate the growth, morphometry, and wood density of tree species in an agroforestry system. The study was conducted in an experiment implemented in 2012 on the property of NKG Fazendas Brasileiras, located in the municipality of Santo Antônio do Amparo, Minas Gerais. The second part of the study surveyed variables related to the growth, morphometry, and basic wood density of the tree species evaluated. The first article focused on assessing the growth of the species over time, considering the age range between 4 and 8 years. The main results observed were progressive increases in diameter at breast height (DBH), total height, and volume in all species, with acrocarps showing the greatest increases in all variables analyzed. The second article addressed the morphometry of the species at 12 years of age. Once again, acrocarp presented the highest values for DBH (51.58 cm), height (19.81 m), and crown diameter (12.60 m), demonstrating its high capacity for both vertical and horizontal occupancy. While African mahogany and teak performed worse in these characteristics, the third article evaluated the effect of spacing on the growth and basic wood density of the species. Acrocarp remained the best-performing species, presenting the highest average DBH and volume values at both spacings, unlike African mahogany and teak, which showed lower growth regardless of the spatial arrangement. Basic wood density varied among the species, being higher in acrocarp and lower in teak, but was not influenced by the spacing adopted. Overall, the results obtained across the three articles demonstrate that, among the tree species in the system, acrocarp stood out in all variables evaluated. However, it is concluded that this species represents a promising alternative for agroforestry systems that aim for high productivity, efficient coverage and wood production with superior technological quality and that for its implementation in agroforestry systems, the purpose of planting, the characteristics of each species involved in the system, such as growth dynamics, the effective onset of intraspecific and interspecific competition must be taken into account.