Response of a hybrid poplar clone to soil acidification and liming.

Abstract

The soil was a loamy fine sand (pH 5.7) collected from an Ap horizon of a forest tree nursery. Lime additions failed to improve growth significantly over a 20-wk period, and excessive liming to pH 7.6 reduced shoot dry weight by 33%, probably because of decreased availability of micronutrients. Sulfur, acidifying the soil to pH 4.1 depressed growth as much as 76%, closely associated with increased Al in both foliage and soil as well as reduced foliar uptake of the other essential nutrients. Maximum height growth of clone DTAC-32 occurred between pH 6.0-7.0.-from Author