Biomass of understorey plants between 1.5 and 5.0m in a logged-over forest

The biomass o f various com ponents o f understorey plants o f a Lowland Dipterocarp Forest, between 1.5 and 5.0 m in height, was determined by harvesting 47 plants from a 0.01 ha plot. The total above ground biomass was equivalent to 2.78 tonnes/ha, and this was made up o f 81 percent stem, 7.5 percent branch and 11.5 percent leaf. The leaf area index (LAI) o f the stratum was 0.36. Individual biomass o f plant com ponents and o f the total plant was related to their collar girth. Using these regression equations, estimates based on measurements o f collar girth in a 0.2 ha plot was found to be very close to that obtained by harvesting. This suggests that regression equations could be suitable for estimating biomass especially where no felling is allowed