Agua Salud (Panama)
The Native Species Plantation within the overall Agua Salud Project was established in 2008. The plantation is designed to test hypotheses related to the growth and development of native species in monocultures and mixtures as well as ecosystem function and services. Native timber species were chosen as target species as the overall theme of the project is related to understanding ecosystem services and as carbon credits alone will not cover the establishment and management costs of plantations in Panama.
There is an application trial linked to this experiment.
Design
The Agua Salud Native Species Plantation is approximately 75 hectares and is divided into two blocks of roughly equivalent size that are 3 kilometres apart. Each block contains 21 different treatments (mixtures), each treatment present in 6 or more replicate plots. The plots are randomly distributed within a block. The species were selected based on physiological and morphological traits, and the target species are long-lived pioneer species.
Site characteristics
| Agua Salud (Panama) | |
|---|---|
Country |
Panama |
Biome |
tropical |
Latitude |
9.21 |
Longitude |
-79.73 |
Soil type |
Oxisols |
Former land use |
cattle pasture |
Altitude |
200-300 m |
Design |
systematic in hexigonal arrangement |
Plot shape |
rectangular |
Plot size (m^2) |
1755 |
Plant distance (m) |
3 |
Number of trees planted |
60 075 |
Planting date |
July-September 2008 |
Diversity variables |
species richness |
Diversity gradient |
1, 2, 5, 6 sp. |
Size species pool |
5 + 5 |
Species pool |
Anacardium excelsum |
Contact person |
Jefferson Hall |
hallje@si.edu |
A meteorological station sends meteo data in real time to the web.
Extra information
For more information on the Agua Salud experiment, send an e-mail to the contact persons, visit the website of the Agua Salud project, or explore the publications that utilized data from this experiment.
Research papers
- Blondeel H, Guillemot J, Martin‐StPaul N, Druel A, Bilodeau‐Gauthier S, Bauhus J, … Baeten L 2024 Tree diversity reduces variability in sapling survival under drought. Journal of Ecology 112(5): 1164-1180 - https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.14294
- Depauw L, De Lombaerde E, Dhiedt E, Blondeel H, Abdala-Roberts L, Auge H, Barsoum N, Bauhus J, Chu C, Damtew A, Eisenhauer N, V. Fagundes M, Ganade G, Gendreau-Berthiaume B, Godbold D, Gravel D, Guillemot J, Hajek P, Hector A, Hérault B, Jactel H, Koricheva J, Kreft H, Liu X, Mereu S, Messier C, Muys B, Nock CA, Paquette A, Parker JD, Parker WC, Paterno, GB, Perring MP, Ponette Q, Potvin C, Reich PB, Rewald B, Scherer-Lorenzen M, Schnabel F, Sousa-Silva R, Weih M, Clara Zemp D, Verheyen K, Baeten L 2024 Enhancing Tree Performance Through Species Mixing: Review of a Quarter-Century of TreeDivNet Experiments Reveals Research Gaps and Practical Insights. Current Forestry Reports - https://doi.org/10.1007/s40725-023-00208-y
- Warner E, Cook-Patton SC, Lewis, OT, Brown N, Koricheva J, Eisenhauer N, … Hector A 2023 Young mixed planted forests store more carbon than monocultures—a meta-analysis. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change (6): 1226514
- FAO 2023 Towards more resilient and diverse planted forests. Unasylva (254)74: 2031/1. Rome. https://doi. org/10.4060/cc8584en
- Marshall A, Nelson CA, Hall JS 2022 Species selection and plantation management in enrichment planting with native timber species in the Panama Canal watershed. Frontiers in Forest and Global Change - https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2022.925877
- Shovon TA, Kang S, Scherer-Lorenzen M, Nock CA 2022 Changes in the direction of the diversity–productivity relationship over 15 years of stand development in a planted temperate forest. Journal of Ecology - https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13855
- Sinacore K, García EH, Howard T, van Breugel M, Lopez OR, Finkral AJ, Hall JS 2022 Towards effective reforestation: growth and commercial value of four commonly planted tropical timber species on infertile soils in Panama. New Forests - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-022-09906-0
- Quesada-Ávila G, Turner BL, Hall JS 2021 No evidence that the valuable timber species, Dalbergia retusa, enhances nutrient cycling and uptake by neighboring timber species. Journal of Sustainable Forestry - https://doi.org/10.1080/10549811.2021.1989700
- Messier C, Bauhus J, Sousa-Silva R, Auge H, Baeten L, Barsoum N, Bruelheide H, Caldwell B, Cavender-Bares J, Dhiedt E, Eisenhauer N, Ganade G, Gravel D, Guillemot J, Hall JS, Hector A, Hérault B, Jactel H, Koricheva J, Kreft H, Mereu S, Muys B, Nock CA, Paquette A, Parker JD, Perring MP, Ponette Q, Potvin C, Reich PB, Scherer-Lorenzen M, Schnabel F, Verheyen K, Weih M, Wollni M, Zemp DC 2021 For the sake of resilience and multifunctionality, let’s diversify planted forests! Conservation Letters e12829 - https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12829
- Marshall A, McLaughlin B P, Zerr C, Yanguas-Fernández E, Hall J S 2020 Early indications of success rehabilitating an underperforming teak (Tectona grandis) plantation in Panama through enrichment planting. New Forests 1-19 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-020-09801-6
- Sinacore K, Asbjornsen H, Hernandez-Santana V, Hall J S 2020 Differential and dynamic water regulation responses to El Niño for monospecific and mixed species planted forests. Ecohydrology e2238 - https://doi.org/10.1002/eco.2238
- Kerdraon D, Drewer J, Castro B, Wallwork A, Hall J S, Sayer E J 2019 Litter traits of native and non-native tropical trees influence soil carbon dynamics in timber plantations in panama. Forests 10(3): 209 - https://doi.org/10.3390/f10030209
- Mayoral C, van Breugel M, Turner B L, Asner G P, Vaughn N R, Hall J S 2019 Effect of microsite quality and species composition on tree growth: A semi-empirical modeling approach. Forest ecology and management 432: 534-545 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2018.09.047
- Sinacore K, Asbjornsen H, Hernandez-Santana V, Hall J S 2019 Drought differentially affects growth, transpiration, and water use efficiency of mixed and monospecific planted forests. Forests 10(2): 153 - https://doi.org/10.3390/f10020153
- Batterman SA, Hall JS, Turner BL, Hedin LO, LaHaela Walter JK, Sheldon P, Van Breugel M 2018 Phosphatase activity and nitrogen fixation reflect species differences, not nutrient trading or nutrient balance, across tropical rainforest trees. Ecology Letters 21: 1486-1495 - doi: 10.1111/ele.13129
- Roels SM, Porter JD, Lindell CA 2018 Predation pressure by birds and arthropods on herbivorous insects affected by tropical forest restoration strategy. Restoration Ecology 26: 6 - doi: 10.1111/rec.12693
- Mayoral C, Van Breugel M, Cerezo A, Hall JS 2017 Survival and growth of five Neotropical timber species in monocultures and mixtures. Forest Ecology and Management 403: 1-11 - doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2017.08.002
- Miller E, Dandois JP, Detto M, Hall JS 2017 Drones as a Tool for Monoculture Plantation Assessment in the Steepland Tropics. Forests 8(5): 168 - https://doi.org/10.3390/f8050168
- Guerrero-Ramírez NR, Craven D, Messier C, Potvin C, Turner BL, Handa IT 2016 Root quality and decomposition environment, but not tree species richness, drive root decomposition in tropical forests. Plant and Soil 404: 125-139 – https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-016-2828-y
- Paul GS, Montagnini F, Berlyn GP, Craven D, Van Breugel M, Hall JS 2012 Foliar herbivory and leaf traits of five native tree species in a young plantation of Central Panama. New Forests 43: 69-87 - doi: 10.1007/s11056-011-9267-7
! Website of experiment does no longer exist
Aboveground biomass harvest of Terminalia amazonia trees to develop species and treatment specific allometric equations to improve accuracy of biomass estimates between treatments. (left) Set-up of the harvest of a tree; (right) Fresh biomass of stems and leaves.