Seasonal nutrient dynamics of foliage and litterfall on Walker Branch Watershed, a deciduous forest ecosystem

Technical Report · Mon Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1976

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7366129· OSTI ID:7366129

Grizzard, T.; Henderson, G. S.; Clebsch, E. E.C.; Reichle, D. E.

A detailed twelve-month study of litterfall, live foliage biomass, and seasonal nutrient (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, sodium, and magnesium) dynamics in tree components was performed for forest types on Walker Branch Watershed, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Biomass and nutrient content of foliage, reproductive parts and branches were examined for ten dominant trees in order to assess the relative importance of litterfall in returning nutrients to the forest floor in four different forest types. Litterfall, measured in pine, pine-oak-hickory, oak-hickory, and mesophytic hardwood forests, was separated into three components (leaves, reproductive parts, and branches). Seasonal comparisons of those forest types were made for biomass and nutrient inputs for each component and for total litterfall.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., Tenn. (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• OSTI ID: 7366129
• Report Number(s): ORNL/TM-5254
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

510200* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALKALI METALS
ALKALINE EARTH METALS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOMASS
CALCIUM
CRYOGENIC FLUIDS
DATA ANALYSIS
DISSOLUTION
ECOSYSTEMS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOREST LITTER
FORESTS
LEACHING
LEAVES
MAGNESIUM
METALS
NITROGEN
NONMETALS
NUTRIENTS
PHOSPHORUS
PLANT STEMS
PLANTS
POTASSIUM
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
SEASONAL VARIATIONS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SODIUM
TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS
TRANSLOCATION
TREES
VARIATIONS