Abstract
Bamboo dominates in biomass accumulation and carbon storage due to its rapid growth,
which has been widely reported worldwide. Thorny bamboo (Bambusa stenostachya) is one
of the most dominant bamboo species in Taiwan due to its multiuse functions. The aims of this research were to access the aboveground biomass (AGB) and carbon storage capability of
individual culms and at the stand level of thorny bamboo using 4 different allometric models:
the general (I), general (II), WBE, and Ruark. The thorny bamboo of this study was sampled
in southern Taiwan; its basic biomass accumulation and carbon storage of each aboveground component (leaves, branches, and culms) were determined in a previous study (Lin et al. 2011).
We further analyzed the allometric relationships between the diameter at breast height (DBH)
and each aboveground component based on various allometric models. The results showed that
the general (II) model was the best predictor of AGB compared to the other models. We used this model to predict the AGB and carbon storage at the stand level obtaining amounts of around 58.5
Mg ha-1 and 26.8 Mg ha-1 C, respectively. The results illustrate that thorny bamboo possesses
high potential for carbon storage.