EDAPHIC PROPERTIES AND FOLIAR ELEMENTAL CONCENTRATIONS FROM SAND PINE (PINUS CLAUSA) POPULATIONS THROUGHOUT FLORIDA |
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| Authors: | Juliana K Evans Albert J Parker Kathleen C Parker David S Leigh |
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| Institution: | Department of Geography , University of Georgia , Athens, Georgia 30602-2502 |
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| Abstract: | Soil physical and chemical properties, plus foliar elemental concentrations, are reported for surface (5–10 cm) and subsurface (35–40 cm) soil and foliar tissue samples from 20 sand pine (Pinus clausa) populations, 9 from the Choctawhatchee variety on the Florida panhandle and 11 from the Ocala variety on the Florida peninsula. Sand pine occurred exclusively on sandy soils, with mean sand content >97%. Soils generally were low in organic carbon and soil elemental concentrations. Both K and P were below analytic detection limits, whereas Ca and Mg were present at only modest levels. Only soil Al and Fe were relatively abundant. Foliar elemental concentrations indicated pronounced bioconcentration of nutrients by sand pine. Macronutrients (Ca, K, Mg, and P) approached or exceeded levels typical of other southern pine species. Some contrasts in edaphic and foliar tissue properties were apparent between varieties, but contrasts were more pronounced between groups of populations based on both soil color (yellow-sand group) and variety (Choctawhatchee white-sand and Ocala white-sand groups). The yellow-sand group, dominated by inland Choctawhatchee sites on sediments of mixed marine/fluvial origin, possessed less well sorted sand grains, higher clay content, lower pH, and higher levels of soil Al and Fe. The Choctawhatchee white-sand group consisted primarily of coastal dune sites, with well-sorted sands that reflect an eolian substrate. The Ocala white-sand group ranged primarily along the interior sand ridges of central Florida and was intermediate in sedimentological character. Foliar elemental concentrations did not reflect soil elemental patterns. Whereas Ocala samples were significantly higher in P and Mg, Choctawhatchee samples were higher in K, and there were no signficant varietal differences in foliar Ca. Key words: sand pine, soil elemental concentrations, foliar elemental concentrations, Florida.] |
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