Tree volume equation for Sahelian ecosystem in northern Nigeria

Abstract

Tree species has potential commercial value which can have important contribution to the economy. The need for developing volume equations that can be use in managing these tree species becomes very important. Volume equation was developed for timber species in sahel ecosystem of northern Nigeria. Data were collected through non destructive procedure with the use of Spiegel Relascope and meter tape. The data consisted number of trees species and families, diameter at breast height (D.B.H) and merchantable height for eight (8) timber species. A total of one hundred and eighty one (181) trees from different families and species were recorded as shown in table 1. The result from the study showed that the DBH ranged from 0.10m to 1.05m with a mean of 0.2914, and merchantable height ranged from 14.30m to 3.20m respectively. The merchantable volume ranged from 0.05m3 to 1.55 m3 in the study area. The Schumacher–Hall’s volume function was fitted to the data of the sampled tree species. Two equations were rated the best among others. Validation of the equations was conducted to confirm the goodness of fit and the resulting equations have the needed statistical properties.