Carbon Storage of some Rubber Trees (Hevea brasiliensis) Clones in HEVECAM’s Plantations in South Cameroon

The objective of this work was to estimate the quantity of carbon stored by four main clones of rubber tree cultivated in South Cameroon: GT 1, PB 217, PR 107 and RRIC 100. The forest inventory method was used to measure trees morphological parameters, the latter used to calculate carbon storage using the allometric equation of Wauters et al., (2008). The main morphological parameters measured were: leaf area index (LAI), circumference (C), diameter at breast height (DBH) and total tree height (h). Comparing the morphological parameters of clones two by two using a Dunn test, we observe significant differences in the circumference, the diameter and even very significant in the leaf area index, but not in the height. The clones GT 1, PR 107, PB 217, and RRIC 100 stored on average: 111.05 tC / ha, 150.18 tC / ha, 165.25 tC / ha, and 187.25 tC/ha respectively. A significant difference was established between the means of carbon storage of the clones GT 1 and PB 217 (p = 0.0488) on one hand and, that of the clones GT 1 and RRIC 100 (p = 0.0240), on the other hand. These results are an estimation of models, further research can be undertaken for exact measurements.