An inventory of Guadua (Guadua angustifolia) bamboo in the Coffee Region of Colombia

Management of renewable natural resources and the corresponding policy formulation should be founded on reliable data and information. This refers both to information on the resource itself and to information on the market situation. In this paper, we present methodology and major results of an inventory of the Guadua resources, in a study area of about 1 million ha within the Coffee Region of Colombia. This inventory produced for the first time sample-based statistical estimations of the Guadua area and growing stock. In the study area, land cover of Guadua patches was estimated to be 3.9% or about 40,000 ha (minimum patch area 0.3 ha). This is higher than figures published earlier. Estimation for mean number of standing culms (including shoots and dry culms) per hectare was 6,940 with a mean diameter at breast height of 10.8 cm, apparent commercial volume of 654 m3/ha, commercial wood volume of 304 m3/ha, oven-dry biomass of 311 ton/ha, and total carbon stock of 156 ton/ha. While the low-intensity sampling approach worked well and may serve as an example for similar studies, we identified a number of issues for further research, particularly in what refers to as the basic mensurational models for Guadua volume and biomass estimation from inventories.