Using fig and eucalyptus for ecosystem restoration and management: good choices with carbon storage ability

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) and fig (Ficus carica) are considered as two of the most important forest species worldwide with nutritional values. This study was carried out in the Ahoochar region, during 2015-2017.This study was conducted to compare the ability of fig and eucalyptus in carbon sequestration as well as some of soil characteristics. This study was conducted as factorial experiment within a complete randomized design. According to the obtained results, fig trees have higher ability of carbon sequestration compared with eucalyptus. Soil of fig trees had a higher pH, bulk density, organic matter, organic carbon, and carbon sequestration compared with eucalyptus. However, the electrical conductivity (EC) of eucalyptus soil was significantly higher than fig. The amounts of organic carbon, organic matter, and carbon sequestration at the soil depth of 0-15 cm were significantly higher than the depth of 15-30. Shallower soils contained higher percentages of organic carbon in comparison with deeper soils, and there was a significant difference between the depths of 0-15 cm and 15-30 cm which contained 1.72% and 0.87% of organic carbon, respectively. The highest percentage of organic carbon was measured in the fig soil at a depth of 0-15 cm (2.33%), whereas the lowest percentage (0.58%) was measured in the control soil at 15-30 cm. In total, fig tree with a good ability in carbon sequestration can be a good candidate for the forest management and rehabilitation especially in dry and semi dryland. Graphical abstract.