Introduction: Forest carbon accumulation is crucial to mitigate ongoing climate change, as large individual trees store a substantial portion of the total carbon in biomass. In this study, large trees and carbon storage were estimated in five forests in the Peruvian Amazon. Methods: For the study, 100 plots were selected (twenty 500 m2 plots per forest site), distributed between 382 to 2086 meters above sea level. Various relationships were explored between the diameter at breast height (DBH) of the most abundant tree species and above- and below-ground carbon. The average carbon content in the tree was calculated based on 50% of the total tree volume at five sites of the Peruvian Amazon. Results: The site with most tree species (Alto Mayo Forest), had 59 tree species. The species Brosimum alicastrum, Ficus insipida, Manilkara bidentata, Inga sp., and Pourouma cecropiifolia showed an ave...

Introduction: Land-use change from primary forests to agricultural croplands can degrade soil quality by depleting soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (STN), and soil-available potassium (SAK). The magnitudes and thresholds of these losses in the Peruvian Amazon remain insufficiently quantified. Methods: We assessed six land-use systems—two primary forests and four croplands (coffee, cocoa, oil palm, camu camu)—collecting 72 surface soil samples (0–20 cm) from 12 subplots per system using pit sampling. SOC, STN, and SAK were measured with standard laboratory procedures and compared across land uses. Results: The humid primary forest (WE–PF) had the highest nutrient status (SOC 118.99 t C ha⁻¹; STN 0.35%; SAK 181.83 mg kg⁻¹). The lowest values occurred in croplands, especially camu camu (SOC 23.93 t C ha⁻¹; STN 0.08%). Forest-to-cropland conversion was associated wi...

The growth and yield of sweet peppers are constrained by factors such as fertilization practices and edaphoclimatic conditions, which ultimately threaten global food security in the context of an ever-growing population. This study evaluated the effect of a liquid biofertilizer derived from cocoa husks on the growth and chlorophyll content of sweet pepper (Capsicum chinense) cultivated in San Martín, Peru. The experiment was conducted at the experimental station of the National Institute of Agrarian Innovation in Tarapoto, San Martín, Peru (6°35′00″ S, 76°19′46″ W). A completely randomized design was applied, consisting of five treatments (0, 750, 1250, 2250, and 3000 mL) with 20 plants per treatment, totaling 100 experimental units. The biofertilizer was applied eight days after sowing (days). Plant height, stem diameter, and leaf chlorophyll content were measured at 15, 35,...

The latex yield in Hevea brasiliensis trees is highly variable; Therefore, it is important to propagate commercial clones of this species by grafting in order to standardize or improve latex yields and therefore improve the economic income of producers in this part of the Amazon region. Objective. To evaluate the attachment and development of rubber clones propagated by grafting in the Peruvian jungle. Methodology. Nine-month-old patterns installed in the field were used. These were grafted with budding rods from the commercial clones TR-1, FX-3864, RRIM-600, IAN-873 and MDF-180. A completely randomized block design was used with five treatments and three blocks with 15 experimental units; each containing 30 repetitions. The data obtained were subjected to analysis of variance and Tukey's multiple range test (p<0.05) and the Kruskal Wallis test. Results. The best results in attachment an...

The Peruvian Amazon has been significantly affected by land use and climate change, decreasing decomposition processes, which cause a significant depletion of soil C stocks. In this study, we estimated soil organic C (SOC) mediated by different plant covers in coffee (Coffea arabica L.) plantations and secondary forests in several districts of the San Martín Region, Peru. We calculated the critical threshold, saturation point, and the organic C deficit of these Amazonian soils. The association between geography, soil physical-chemical characteristics, and SOC was estimated through principal component analysis. Across all sites of the study, SOC stock had an average value of 69.19 t ha-1, with 48.95 t ha-1 constituting inorganic C. The highest SOC stock (225.28 t ha-1) was observed under secondary forest in the Jepelacio district. The SOC stocks were positively correlated with altitude a...

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Background: The Amazonian forests are increasingly threatened due to continuous changes in land use, particularly deforestation. This study aimed to quantify and analyze the vertical distribution of soil glomalin and its relationship with carbon, climate, and soil properties across three forest types of the Peruvian Amazon. A total of 18 plots were selected and sampled in forests with different vegetation cover types: deforested, disturbed, and primary forest. The vertical variation of total glomalin (TG), easily extractable glomalin (EEG), and the number of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) spores was estimated, as it was the relationships of these variables with soil depth, physical-chemical properties, and climate conditions. Results: The mean values for TG, EEG, and AMF showed vertical variations in the three forest cover types, with high values in disturbed forests and degraded so...

Inoculation of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) has important benefits, not only for plant growth but also for reducing Cd absorption in Theobroma plants. This study aimed to investigate the influence of cadmium (Cd) and arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) on growth and chlorophyll content (CC) in Theobroma plants. This experiment had a 3 × 2 × 2 factorial design with species of Theobroma cacao and Theobroma grandiflorum, AMF inoculation (mycorrhizal control and AMF inoculation), and Cd addition (0, 1, and 3 mg kg⁻¹), arranged in a completely randomized design with three repetitions. The AMF inoculum consisted of applying 1500 units to each seedling. The results showed that the Cd content decreased in the stems with AMF treatment for T. cacao as well as in the soil, showing significant differences in both variables. However, a reduction of Cd could also be observed in T. grandiflorum stem...