Chaparral biomass measurements in the Cleveland National Forest

This data publication provides plot-based measurements of: stem diameter for each stem > 0.4 centimeters on every sampled shrub, shrub status at time of sampling (live/dead/charred), and estimated shrub height obtained from 5 plots sampled in 2012-2013 on each of three sites (15 total plots) in the Cleveland National Forest. The sites are located near Kitchen Creek Road on southern Laguna Mountain in San Diego County, CA and were characterized by time since last burn -- 7 years, 28 years, or 68 years prior to the study. These data also include stem diameter, biomass, and representative percent moisture values from shrubs harvested outside of the study plots at 18 locations across the three sites. Locations were outside, but near to, the study plots to avoid destructive sampling within the study plots. These data were collected between 2011 and 2013.
Data were collected to document differences in biomass accumulation in three nearby sites with varying burn histories in southern California chaparral. Sites had burned approximately 7, 28, and 68 years ago at the time of sampling. The destructively sampled measurements were used to calculate age and species-specific regression equations relating stem diameter to dry biomass. The stem diameter measurements from the 15 study plots were used as input into these equations to estimate plot-level biomass.