Biomass Production of Poplar Plantation Ecosystem in Yangtze River Beach Land

Abstract

Currently, China is home to more than four million hectares of oil plants nationwide, and 154 kinds of energy trees could produce seeds containing more than 40 percent of oil, with total production of the seeds totaling five million tons. Another 57 million hectares of waste land are available and suitable for planting trees for the production of forest-based bioenergy, of which there is 630,000 hm2 beach land in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River where is suited for poplar growing. In order to approach the potential of poplar biomass production, the test was conducted in the paper. The result indicated that in the poplar forest ecosystem the herbaceous biomass production was 15.554 t/hm2. While biomass production for trees was 43.164 t/hm2, totally in the poplar plantation ecosystem biomass production reached 58.718 t/hm2. As well, poplars growing added incomes for local farmers.