PS 41-126 - The role of mango gardens in Carbon sequestration; a case study from Multan, Pakistan

Abstract: Carbon sequestration (CS) in urban areas and forests has receiving enormous interest due to its potential in mitigating climate change. The agro forestry system including crop trees plays crucial role in CS by transforming CO₂ into significant amount of biomass. The current study was designed to evaluate the CS potential of Mango (Mangifera indica L.) orchards in Multan Saddar. Quantitative ecological approach was applied. A total of 198 quadrat of 20×20m were placed selectively randomized in the study area. The functional traits such as Tree height, diameter at breast height(DBH) were recorded in the field while 10 cm of wood piece and leaves were taken to record the wood density (WD),bark thickness (BT), leaf are (LA), leaf thickness (LT), specific leaf area (SLA), leaf dry matter content (LDMC), major vein density (MVD), minor vein density (Mvd). Soil was collected from each quadrat to asses Electrical conductivity (EC), pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), Nitrogen (N) and organic matter (OM). A total of 594 trees were recorded in 198 plots. The data was analyzed through regression analysis, Pearson correlation matrix and structure equation modeling to find the impact of functional trait on CS capacity of Mango orchards. Our result reveals that DBH and height have significantly high impact on the CS of mango orchards. Furthermore, CS has a direct association with DBHBT, WD, and mVD as well as an indirect relationship with LT, LA, SLA, and LDMC. In contrast, it was found from an abiotic study that CS has a direct relationship with K and P and an indirect relationship with OM, N pH, EC, and TDS. As a consequence of CO2 sequestration, these orchards also substantially support to the C supply. This demonstrates how crucial Mangifera orchards are for carbon sequestration.