Abstract
We tested the hypothesis that P was the nutrient limiting net primary production of a nativeMetrosideros polymorpha forest on a highly weathered montane tropical soil in Hawaii. A factorial experiment used all combinations of three fertilizer treatments: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and a mix of other essential nutrients (OE), consisting primarily of mineral derived cations and excluding N and P. P addition, but not N or OE, increased leaf area index within 12 months, foliar P concentration measured at 18 months, and stem diameter increment within 18 months. Stem growth at 18 months was even greater when trees fertilized with P also received the OE treatment. N and P additions increased leaf litterfall and N and P in combination further increased litterfall. The sequence of responses suggests that increased available P promoted an increase in photosynthetic area which led to increased wood production. P was the essential element most limiting to primary production on old volcanic soil in contrast to the N limitation found on young volcanic soils.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Baskerville GL (1972) Use of logarithmic regression in the estimation of plant biomass. Can. J. For. Res. 2: 49–53
Bormann BT & Sidle RC (1990) Changes in productivity and distribution of nutrients in a chronosequence at Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. J. Ecol. 78: 561–578
Chabot BF Hicks DJ (1982) The ecology of leaf life spans. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 13 229–259
Clague DA & Dalrymple LB (1988) Age and petrology of Alkalic postshield and rejuvenated-stage lava from Kauai, Hawaii. Contrib. Mineral. Petrol. 99: 202–218
Constantinides M & Fownes JH (1994) Nitrogen mineralization from leaves and litter of tropical plants: Relationship to nitrogen, lignin and soluble polyphenol concentrations. Soil Biol. Biochem. 26: 49–55
Crews TE, Kitayama K, Fownes JH, Riley RH, Herbert DA, Mueller-Dombois D & Vitousek PM (1995) Changes in soil phosphorus fractions and ecosystem dynamics across a long chronosequence in Hawaii. Ecology 76, in press
Cuevas E & Medina E (1988) Nutrient dynamics within amazonian forests, II. Fine root growth, nutrient availability and leaf litter decomposition. Oecol. 76: 222–235
Field CB & Mooney HA (1986) The Photosynthesis-Nitrogen Relationship in Wild Plants. In: Givnish T (Ed) On the Economy of Plant Form and Function (pp 25–55). Cambridge Univ. Press
Fox RL, de la Pena RS, Gavenda RT, Habte M, Hue NV, Ikawa H, Jones RC, Plucknett DL, Silva JA & Soltanpour P (1991) Amelioration and subsequent soil formation in denuded bauxitic materials. Allertonia 6: 128–184
Gerrish G (1988) The changing carbon balance in aging Metrosideros polymorpha trees. Thesis (Ph.D.), University of Hawaii at Manoa, Botanical Sciences, No. 2307
Gerrish G, Mueller-Dombois D & Bridges KW (1988) Nutrient limitation and Metrosideros forest dieback in Hawaii. Ecology 69: 723–727
Giambelluca TW, Nullet MA & Schroeder TA (1986) Rainfall Atlas of Hawaii. Department of Land and Natural Resources, State of Hawaii
Gower ST & Norman JM (1991) Rapid estimation of leaf area index in conifer and broadleaf plantations. Ecology 72: 1896–1900
Harrington & Fownes (1995) Radiation interception and growth of planted and coppice stands of four fast-growing tropical trees. J. Appl. Ecol. 32: 1–8
Keeland BD & Sharitz RR (1993) Accuracy of tree growth measurements using dendrometer bands. Can. J. For. Res. 23: 2452–2457
Miller HG & Miller JD (1976) Effect of nitrogen supply on net primary production in Corsican pine. J. Appl. Ecol. 13: 249–256
Mueller-Dombois D (1986) Perspectives for an etiology of stand-level dieback. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 17: 121–143
Reich PB & Schoettle AW (1988) Role of phosphorus and nitrogen in photosynthetic and whole plant carbon gain and nutrient use efficiency in eastern White pine. Oecol. 77: 25–33
Reich PB, Uhl C, Walters MB & Ellsworth DS (1991) Leaf lifespan as a determinant of leaf structure and function among 23 amazonian tree species. Oecol. 86: 16–24
Riley RH & Vitousek PM (1995) Nutrient dynamics and nitrogen trace gas flux during ecosystem development in Hawaiian montane rainforests. Ecology, 76: 292–304
Smith NJ, Chen JM & Black TA (1993) Effects of clumping on stand leaf area index using the LI-COR LAI-2000. Can. J. For. Res. 23: 1940–1943
Snedecor GW & Cochran WG (1980) Statistical Methods, seventh edition. The Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa, USA
Soil Survey Staff (1972) Soil Survey of the Islands of Kauai, Oahu, Maui, Molokai, and Lanai, State of Hawaii. USDA SCS and University of Hawaii Ag. Exp. Station. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
Soil Survey Staff (1992) Keys to Soil Taxonomy. SMSS Technical Monograph, No. 19. Pocahontas Press, Blacksburg, Virginia
Sprugel DG (1983) Correcting for bias in log-transformed allometric equations. Ecology 64: 209–210
Tanner EVJ (1981) Decomposition of leaf litter in Jamaican montane rain forests. J. Ecol. 69: 263–275
Tanner EVJ, Kapos V & Franco W (1992) Nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization effects on Venezuelan montane forest trunk growth and litterfall. Ecology 73: 78–86
Vitousek PM, Turner DR and Kitayama K (1995) Foliar nutrients during long-term soil development in Hawaiian montane rain forest. Ecology 76: 712–720
Vitousek PM, Walker LR, Whiteaker LD & Matson PA (1993) Nutrient limitations to plant growth during primary succession in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Biogeochem. 23: 197–215
Vitousek PM & Howarth RW (1991) Nitrogen limitation on land and in the sea: how can it occur? Biogeochem. 13: 87–115
Vitousek PM & LR Walker (1987) Colonization, Succession and Resource Availability: Ecosytem-Level Interactions. In: Gray AJ, Crawley MJ & PJ Edwards (Eds) Colonization, Succession and Stability, (pp 207–223). Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford
Vitousek PM, Walker LR, Whiteaker LD, Mueller-Dombois D & Matson PA (1987) Biological invasion by Myrica faya alters ecosystem development in Hawaii. Science 238: 802–804
Vitousek PM, Van Cleve K, Balakrishnan N & Mueller-Dombois D (1983). Soil development and nitrogen turnover in montane rainforest soils on Hawaii. Biotrop. 15: 268–274
Walker DR & Aplet LR (1994) Growth and fertilization response of Hawaiian tree ferns. Biotrop. 26: 378–383
Walker TW & Syers JK (1976) The fate of phosphorus during pedogenesis. Geoderma 14: 1–19
Welles JM & Norman JM (1991) Instrument for indirect measurement of canopy architecture. Agron. J. 83: 818–825
Wright TC & Helz RT (1987) Recent advances in Hawaiian petrology and geochemistry. In: Decker RW, Wright TC & Stouffer PH (Eds) Volcanism in Hawaii (pp 625–640). USGS Professional Paper 1350. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Herbert, D.A., Fownes, J.H. Phosphorus limitation of forest leaf area and net primary production on a highly weathered soil. Biogeochemistry 29, 223–235 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02186049
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02186049