Soil nutrient bioavailability and nutrient content of pine trees (Pinus thunbergii) in areas impacted by acid deposition in Korea

Abstract

Acid deposition has caused detrimental effects on tree growth near industrial areas of the world. Preliminary work has indicated that concentrations of NO(3-), SO(4)(2-), F( - ) and Al in soil solutions were 2 to 33 times higher in industrial areas compared to non-industrial areas in Korea. This study evaluated soil nutrient bioavailability and nutrient contents of red pine (Pinus thunbergii) needles in forest soils of industrial and non-industrial areas of Korea. Results confirm that forest soils of industrial areas have been acidified mainly by deposition of sulfate, resulting in increases of Al, Fe and Mn and decreases of Ca, Mg and K concentrations in soils and soil solutions. In soils of industrial areas, the molar ratios of Ca/Al and Mg/Al in forest soils were <2, which can lead to lower levels and availability of nutrients for tree growth. The Ca/Al molar ratio of Pinus thunbergii needles on non-industrial sites was 15, while that of industrial areas was 10. Magnesium concentrations in needles of Pinus thunbergii were lower in soils of industrial areas and the high levels of acid cations such as Al and Mn in these soils may have antagonized the uptake of base cations like Mg. Continued acidification can further reduce uptake of base cations by trees. Results show that Mg deficiency and high concentrations of Al and Mn in soil solution can be limiting factors for Pinus thunbergii growth in industrial areas of Korea.

Assessment of Airborne Heavy Metal Pollution Using Pinus spp. and Tilia spp.

“…Pine needles have been determined to have higher Zn concentrations than the linden leaves, at the sampling sites where both plant species were sampled. Zn concentrations in pine needles have shown to be lower in our research than the concentrations in the studies of Yilmaz and Zengin (2004), Al-Alawi and Mandiwana (2007), Yang et al (2008), and Sun et al (2009). The content of Zn in linden leaves is similar to Zn concentrations in the research of Piczak et al (2003).…”

“…Literature data show that the increased SO 2 concentrations in the air can lead to the Mn deficit in the plants (Kozlov et al, 1995), which also may be the case for pine in this research, considering the long-term pollution by SO 2 in Bor and the surroundings (Serbula et al, 2011(Serbula et al, , 2012b. The contents of Mn in pine needles in this study are lower compared to the concentrations in the study of Yang et al (2008). Mn concentrations in linden leaves in Piczak et al (2003) and Tomašević et al (2004), were lower than the concentrations in the urban-industrial zone of Bor.…”

Application of eggshell waste for the immobilization of cadmium and lead in a contaminated soil

“…Fig. 1 Characteristics of eggshell waste determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Black (Walkley and Black 1934), the Kjeldahl distillation (Yang et al 2009), and the Lancaster method (NIAST 2000) were used to determine the organic matter (OM), total nitrogen (T-N), and available phosphorous (Avail-P 2 O 5 ), respectively (Ok et al 2007a). Tested soil was classified as a type of typical rice paddy soil based on the soil database at the Korean Soil Information System (NAAS 2005).…”

Physiological Responses of Tomato Plants and Soil Microbial Activity in Salt Affected Greenhouse Soil

“…5) that K + is the main cation leading to osmotic adjustment in leaves, stems and roots of different soil EC-exposed tomato plants at 28 days as reported in studies by Matoh et al (1988), Lissner et al (1999) and Vasquez et al (2005). Saltinity influenced plant metabolism, resulting in decreased crop growth and yield through osmotic inhibition of the available water uptake by roots or the specific ion affects (Abd El-Azeem et al 2012;Yang et al 2009). …”