Carbon Sequestration Potential of Mango Orchards in India

Estimates of carbon stocks and stock changes in fruit orchards are necessary under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol. In this direction we estimated the carbon stocks in cultivated mango orchards in India using an exclusive allometric equation developed for estimation of tree biomass of grafted mangoes. Extensive tree, litter, weed and soil samples were collected for estimation of carbon pools by grouping mango areas based on similarity of tree canopy, climate, and dominance of mango varieties grown in these regions. The carbon held in these pools was then compiled and national-level carbon storage in cultivated mango orchards was computed by multiplying with the area occupied by mango in these regions. The country as a whole has sequestered 285.005 mt of carbon in its mango orchards. This is, however, very low compared to polyembrionic mango trees grown from seeds in the wild.