Modelagem geoestatística da estrutura espacial arbórea e dos atributos do solo em Floresta Ombrófila Mista

Abstract

Considering the hypothesis that geostatistics provides improvement for understanding the spatial variability of natural forest formations and their soil characteristics, the aim of this study was to evaluate the spatial relationship between the soil chemical and granulometric attributes regarding the number of trees and the basal area of a Mixed Ombrophilous Forest remnant. The survey of soil attributes and vegetation was carried out in 200 units of 25 x 25 m georeferenced sampling units. Then, geostatistics was used to model the spatial continuity, and punctual ordinary kriging was employed to produce thematic maps. The results obtained confirmed that the spatial continuity of soil attributes, number of trees and basal area can be modelled, whreas non-spatial similarity was observed in the kriging maps. However, it was evident that among the soil variables considered, pH is the one with the greatest spatial relationship with the forest variables.