Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Intraspecific variation of conifer phenolic concentration on a marine terrace soil acidity gradient; a new interpretation

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Plant and Soil Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Interaction between soil acidity and vegetation phenolic concentration was investigated to identify mechanisms by which forests sustain productivity on extremely acidic, infertile soils. Contrasting soils on well-preserved marine terraces of the “Ecological Staircase’ near Mendocino, CA comprise an extreme edaphic gradient. Pygmy forests of dwarf (< 5m) Mendocino cypress (Cupressus pygmaea), Bolander pine (Pinus contorta var. bolanderi), and Bishop pine (Pinus muricata) are found on the oldest, most acidic soils, and along a gradient that includes three distinct levels of soil acidity, with pH(CaCl2) ranging from 5.0 to 3.0 in the upper mineral soil and from 4.0 to 2.0 in the litter layer where fine roots are concentrated. Mature foliage was collected from five sites on this edaphic gradient. Aqueous methanol extracts of the samples were analyzed for concentrations of total phenols and condensed tannin by the Prussian blue and acidified vanillin assays, respectively. There were significant differences (p<0.05) in foliar condensed tannin and phenolic concentrations within each species and concentrations were inversely related to soil pH, approximately doubling along the gradient. Natural selection for soil-regulated variation in polyphenol concentration is interpreted in the context of plant-litter-soil interactions as an adaptation that permits these conifers to survive in extremely acidic soils. H Lambers Section editor

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abuzinadah, R A and Read, D J 1989 The role of proteins in the nitrogen nutrition of ectomycorrhizal plants. IV. The utilization of peptides by birch (Betula pendula) grown in association with mycorrhizal and con-mycorrhizal fungi. New Phytol. 112, 61–68.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Balsberg Pahlsson, A M 1989 Mineral nutrients, carbohydrates and phenolic compounds in leaves of beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) in southern Sweden as related to environmental factors. Tree Physiol. 5, 485–495.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baldwin, I T and Schultz, J C 1983 Rapid changes in tree leaf chemistry induced by damage: evidence for communication between plants. Science 221, 277–279.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bartlett, R J and Riego, D C 1972 Effect of chelation on the toxicity of aluminum. Plant and Soil 37, 419–423.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bernays, E A, Cooper-Driver, G and Bilgener, M 1989 Herbivores and plant tannins. Adv. Ecol. Res. 19, 263–302.

    Google Scholar 

  • Broadhurst, R B and Jones, W T 1978 Analysis of condensed tannins using acidified vanillin. J. Sci. Food Agric. 29, 788–794.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bryant, J P, Chapin, F S and Klein, D R 1983 Carbon/nutrient balance of forest plants in relation to vertebrate herbivory. Oikos 40, 357–368.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chapin, F S 1993 The evolutionary basis of biogeochemical soil development. Geoderma 57, 223–227.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Coulson, C B, Davies and Lewis, A 1960 Polyphenols in plant, humus, and soil. I. Polyphenols of leaves, litter, and superficial humus from mull and mor sites. J. Soil Sci. 11, 20–29.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Critchfeld W B and Little E L 1966 Geographic distribution of pines of the world. USDA Misc. Publ. No. 991. U.S. Dep. Agric.

  • Davies, R I 1971 Relation of polyphenols to decomposition of organic matter and to pedogenic processes. Soil Sci. 111, 80–85.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, J A 1982 Adsorption of natural dissolved organic matter at the oxide/water interface. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 46, 2381–2393.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Facelli, J M and Pickett, S A 1991 Plant litter: its dynamics and effects on plant community structure. Bot. Rev. 57, 1–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finlay, R D, Frostegard, A and Sonnerfeldt 1992 Utilization of organic and inorganic nitrogen sources by ectomycorrhizal fungi in pure culture and in symbiosis with Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud. New Phytol. 120, 105–115.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glyphis, J P and Puttick, G M 1989 Phenolics, nutrition, and insect herbivory in some garrique and maquis plant species. Oecologia 78, 259–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hecht-Buchholz, C, Jorns, C A and Keil, P 1987 Effect of excess aluminum and manganese on Norway spruce seedlings as related to magnesium nutrition. J. Plant Nutr. 10, 1103–1110.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hingston, F J 1962 Activity of polyphenolic constituents of leaves of Eucalyptus and other species in complexing and dissolving iron oxide. Aust. J. Soil Res. 1, 63–73.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horner, J D, Cates, R G and Gosz, J R 1987 Tannin, nitrogen, and cell wall composition of green vs. senescent Douglas-fir foliage: within- and between-stand differences in stands of unequal density. Oecologia 72, 515–519.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hue, N V, Craddock, G R and Adams, F 1986 Effects of organic acids on aluminum toxicity in subsoils. Soil. Sci. Soc. Am. J. 50, 28–34.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, M D and Schultz, J C 1993 Induced plant defenses breached? Phytochemical induction protects an herbivore from disease. Oecologia 94, 195–203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janzen, D H 1974 Tropical blackwater rivers, animals, and mast fruiting by the dipterocarpaceae. Biotropica 6, 69–103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenny, H, Arkley, R J and Schultz, A M 1969 The pygmy forestpodsol ecosystem and its dune associates of the Mendocino coast. Madrono 20, 60–74.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jenny, H 1980 The Soil Resource, Springer-Verlag, New York. 377 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalisz, P J and Stone, E L 1980 Cation exchange capacity of acid forest humus layers. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 44, 407–413.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kuiters, A T 1990 Role of phenolic substances from decomposing forest litter in plant-soil interactions. Acta Bot. Neerl. 39, 329–348.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Leake, J R and Read, D J 1989 Effects of phenolic compounds on nitrogen mobilisation byericoid mycorrhizal systems. Agric. Ecosys. Environ. 29, 225–236.

    Google Scholar 

  • McColl, J G, Pohlman, A A, Jersak, J M, Tam, S C and Northup, R R 1990 Organics and metal solubility in California forest soils. In Sustained Productivity of Forest Lands. Ed. S P Gessel. pp 178–195. Proc. N Am. For. Soils Conf. 7th, Vancouver, British Columbia. Faculty of Forestry Publ., Univ. of British Columbia, Vancouver.

    Google Scholar 

  • McMillan, C 1956 The edaphic restriction of Cupressus and Pinus in the coast ranges of northern California. Ecol. Monogr. 26, 177–212.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKey, D, Waterman, P G, Gartlan, J S and Struhsaker, T T 1978 Phenolic content of vegetation in two African rain forests: ecological implications. Science 202, 61–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merritts, D J, Chadwick, O A and Hendricks, D M 1991 Rates and processes of soil evolution on uplifted marine terraces, northern California. Geoderma 51, 241–275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mole, S, Ross, J A M and Waterman, P G 1988 Light-induced changes in phenolic levels in foliage of rain-forest plants. I. Chemical changes. J. Chem. Ecol. 14, 1–21.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Muller, R N, Kalisz, P J and Kimmerer, T W 1987 Intraspecific variation in production of astringent phenolics over a vegetationresource availability gradient. Oecologia 72, 211–215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nascimento, J C and Langenheim, J H 1986 Leaf sesquiterpenes and phenolics in Copaifera multijuga on contrasting soil types in a central Amazonian rain forest. Biochem. Syst. Ecol. 14, 615–624.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nicolai, V 1988 Phenolic and mineral content of leaves influences decomposition in European forest communities. Oecologia 75, 575–579.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oates, J H, Whitesides, G H, Davies, A G, Waterman, P G, Green, S M, Dasilva, G L and Mole, S 1990 Determinants of variation in tropical forest primate biomass: new evidence from west Africa. Ecology 71, 328–343.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olsen, S R and Sommers, L E 1982 Phosphorus. In Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 2-Chemical and Microbiological Properties. 2nd ed. Eds. A L Page, R H Miller and D R Kennedy. pp 403–430. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parkison, J A and Allen, S E 1975 A wet oxidation procedure suitable for the determination of N and mineral nutrients in biological material. Commun. Soil Sci. Plant Anal. 6, 1–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Powell, H and Rate, A W 1987 Aluminium-tannin equilibria: a potentiometric study. Aust. J. Chem. 40, 2015–2022.

    Google Scholar 

  • Price, M L and Butler, L G 1977 Rapid visual estimation and spectrophotometric determination of tannin content in sorghum grain. J. Agric. Food Chem. 25, 1268–1273.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Price, M L, Scoyoc, S V and Butler, L G 1978 A critical evaluation of the vanillin reaction as an assay for tannin in sorghum grain. J. Agric. Food Chem. 26, 1214–1218.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sanchez, P A and Bandy, D D 1982 Amazon basin soils: management for continuous crop production. Science 216, 821–827.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schnitzer, M, Barr, M and Hertenstein, R 1984 Kinetics and characteristics of humic acids produced from simple phenols. Soil Biol. Biochem. 16, 371–376.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sholars, R E 1982 The pygmy forest and associated plant communities of coastal Mendocino County, California. Black Bear Press, Mendocino, California, 50 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Soil, Survey Staff 1984 Procedures for collecting soil samples and methods of analysis for soil survey. Soil Survey Investigations Rep. No. 1. USDA-SCS Agric. Handb. 436. U.S. Government Printing Offec, Washington, DC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, F J 1982 Humus Chemistry. Wiley-Interscience, New York. 443 p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Breemen, N 1993 Soils as biotic constructs favouring net primary productivity. Geoderma 57, 183–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Cleve, K, Chapin, F S, Dyrness, C T and Viereck, L A 1991 Element cycling in taiga forests: state factor control. BioScience 41, 78–88.

    Google Scholar 

  • Westman, W E 1975 Edaphic climax pattern of the pygmy forest region of California Ecol. Monogr. 45, 109–135.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources, University of California, 95616, Davis, CA, USA

    Robert R. Northup, Randy A. Dahlgren & Zengshou Yu

Authors
  1. Robert R. Northup
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Randy A. Dahlgren
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Zengshou Yu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Northup, R.R., Dahlgren, R.A. & Yu, Z. Intraspecific variation of conifer phenolic concentration on a marine terrace soil acidity gradient; a new interpretation. Plant Soil 171, 255–262 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00010279

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00010279

Key words

Search

Navigation