Short Communication: Survival and growth of mono and mixed species plantations on the Coromandel coast of India

Abstract

Abstract. Anbarashan M, Padmavathy A, Alexandar R. 2017. Short Communication: Survival and growth of monoculture and mixed-species plantations on the Coromandel coast of India. Asian J For 1: 70-76. There exists very little information on the growth of autochthonous tree species in the tropics, and when it is compared to monoculture plantations. The aim of this study was to compare the variation in growth parameters between the mixed-species plantation and mono species plantation. The survival and growth in terms of height and girth of 82 autochthonous mixed-species plantations were compared with Casuarina equisetifolia, an exotic species broadly planted in this region after over a decade (2006 to 2016). In the mixed-species plantation, seven species showed 100% survival rate and 19 species were not survived after 10-year intervals. In the mono species plantation, Casuarina equisetifolia had 92% survival rate. When it is compared to the monoculture plantation, the growth rate of mixed-species plantation showed highly significant differences (P < 0: 05) values. Simple linear regression between annual girth increment and height produced very strong positive relations (R² 0.759). Plantations of Casuarina equisetifolia seem to be well adapted to the coastal region, especially in the Coromandel coast of India. On the other hand, mixed plantations with autochthonous species would contribute more to sustainable management because they provide a greater range of ecological goods and ecosystem services than single-species plantations.