Effective sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere is essential to combating climate change. Many cities have set ambitious carbon neutrality goals, highlighting the significance of urban vegetation as a carbon sink. Integrating urban vegetation into the urban form involves a multi-stage decision-making process, with planning and design playing a key role in the determination of space allocation and plant species selection. While carbon-smart design decisions are often based on emission databases and environmental product declarations (EPD), comprehensive data for urban vegetation is lacking. This study aims to assess carbon stocks in urban shrubs of Finland using dry-weight measurements. The measurements involve separating above- and below-ground parts of shrubs and assessing size indices (SIs). The results indicate species-specific differences in the proportion of root mass to total biomass. Furthermore, the below-ground biomass of plants spreading through sucking rhizome networks cannot be predicted by the size index. Although SIs do not directly describe below-ground biomass, they can predict the total dry weight. Generalising the data to shrub size categories provides an understanding of carbon stocks, but further research is essential, particularly for the process of implementing vegetation in urban settings.

中文翻译：

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灌木可以储存多少碳？来自芬兰的测量和分析


从大气中有效封存碳对于应对气候变化至关重要。许多城市都制定了雄心勃勃的碳中和目标，突出了城市植被作为碳汇的重要性。将城市植被整合到城市形态中涉及一个多阶段的决策过程，其中规划和设计在确定空间分配和植物物种选择方面起着关键作用。虽然碳智能型设计决策通常基于排放数据库和环境产品声明 （EPD），但缺乏城市植被的全面数据。本研究旨在使用干重测量来评估芬兰城市灌木的碳储量。测量包括分离灌木的地上和地下部分并评估大小指数 （SI）。结果表明，根质量与总生物量的比例存在物种特异性差异。此外，通过吸吮根茎网络传播的植物的地下生物量不能通过大小指数来预测。虽然 SI 不直接描述地下生物量，但它们可以预测总干重。将数据推广到灌木大小类别有助于了解碳储量，但进一步的研究是必不可少的，特别是对于在城市环境中实施植被的过程。