Assessment of Sal Seedlings and Herbaceous Flora in the Khairbar Plantation of Sarguja Forest Division, Chhattisgarh

In the present study an attempt has been made to evaluate the growth performance of sal seedlings and also assess the diversity of herbaceous flora in the Khairbar plantation of Sarguja forest division during the year 2013-14. Study reveals that there are prominent variations in the height of the seedlings in Khairbar plantation. The root shoot ratio of seedlings ranged between 0.31 to 0.74. The total height of seedlings ranged from 24.00 to 90.00 cm. The girth of individual seedling ranged between 4.00 and 12.00 cm. The number of branches per seedling ranged between 4.00-17.00. The average collar diameter of sal seedling was 1.96 cm and the sturdiness ranged from 15.09-42.86. Total of 27 herbaceous species comprising 15 families were encountered in the study area. The total density of the herb species was 776000 individuals ha-1 and the maximum density was recorded for Mellilotus alba (64000 individuals ha-1), while minimum for Achyranthus aspera, Malvastrum coromandelicum and Rumex dentatus (12000 individuals ha-1 for each, respectively). The Shannon index (H’) of herbaceous species was 4.606, Simpson index (Cd) was 0.045, Species richness (d) was 1.917 and Equitability (e) was 1.397, respectively. It was observed that the growth performance of sal seedling in the Khairbar plantation site is quiet slow as compared to the other tropical species. It may also be due to the higher population of the herbaceous species. The herbaceous species compete with the sal species for the sharing of the resources for the growth and development. Microclimate and management aspects are the major concern for the good growth performance of the species in plantation sites.