Tree diversity and soil fertility interactions drive carbon storage in degraded cocoa landscapes of Cote d'Ivoire.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Understanding the ecological functioning of degraded cocoa landscapes is critical for restoring productivity and ecosystem services in West Africa. This study investigated how climate, geography, and land-use systems interact to shape tree diversity, soil fertility, and aboveground carbon (AGC) stocks across six cocoa-producing sites in Côte d'Ivoire.

Methods

Field inventories and soil sampling to 50 cm depth were conducted across gradients of climate (1,150-1,650 mm rainfall) and land-use systems (fallow, cocoa agroforestry, and monocropping). Mixed effects ANOVA, regression, and redundancy analyses were applied to test three hypotheses linking environmental gradients, tree diversity, and soil-carbon relationships.

Results

Land-use system had the stronge

SUBMITTER: Atangana AR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12748207 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature