Table 1.
Some physiographic and stand structural characteristics of the plots studied in the four forest types on Mt. Kilimanjaro. Given are means ± SE (n = 3)
| Lower montane forest | Ocotea forest | Podocarpus forest | Erica forest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elevation (m a.s.l.) | 1800–2040 | 2120–2750 | 2800–2970 | 3500–3910 |
| MAT (°C)a | 14.7 ± 0.3 | 11.3 ± 0.7 | 9.3 ± 0.3 | 6.0 ± 1.2 |
| MAP (mm)b | 2227 ± 215 | 1995 ± 285 | 1545 ± 178 | 1051 ± 75 |
| C:N (topsoil)c | 15.9 ± 0.7 | 19.3 ± 1.0 | 18.6 ± 1.3 | 19.6 ± 0.7 |
| pH (KCl) (topsoil)c | 4.23–4.34 | 3.49–4.23 | 3.83–5.35 | 4.45–4.54 |
| WFPS (%)d | 21.6 ± 8.4 | 41.1 ± 13.2 | 36.1 ± 11.5 | n.d |
| AGB (Mg ha−1)e | 267.4 ± 45.0 | 328.8 ± 83.6 | 404.4 ± 49.7 | 32.5 ± 7.2 |
| Stem density (n ha−1)e | 397 ± 39 | 311 ± 36 | 523 ± 33 | 2091 ± 1196 |
| Basal area (m2 ha−1)e | 47.1 ± 9.8 | 46.1 ± 7.7 | 55.7 ± 5.1 | 14.9 ± 3.3 |
| Mean tree height (m)e | 15.6 ± 0.9 | 16.0 ± 1.8 | 15.5 ± 1.3 | 4.9 ± 0.1 |
| LAI (m2 m−2)f | 6.25 ± 0.03 | 5.43 ± 1.16 | 5.09 ± (0.54) | 2.15 ± 0.22 |
| Leaf C:N ratio (mg mg−1) | 19.2 ± 0.6 | 21.2 ± 1.3 | 29.4 ± 3.2 | 37.9 ± 0.8 |
aMAT: mean annual temperature [Appelhans et al. (2015)]
bMAP: mean annual precipitation [Hemp (2006)]
cSoil C:N and pH range values (0–10 cm of the topsoil) (Becker, unpublished data)
dWPFS water-filled pore space (0–5 cm topsoil) (weighted mean of measurements in the long and short rainy seasons, and the long and short dry seasons) [Gütlein et al. (2018)]
eAGB: aboveground biomass stand structural data of trees > 10 cm DBH [Hemp (unpublished data)], in case of Erica forest DBH ≥ 5 cm (Schellenberger Costa, unpublished data)
fLAI: leaf area index [Rutten et al. (2015)]