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Distribution of nutrient elements (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, Fe, and Na) varied substantially among the tissues and species of a late successional oak—pine forest at Brook—haven, New York. Mean nutrient concentration in the biomass was 2.3 times higher in Vaccinium angustifolium than in Pinus rigida; but in net production mnean nutrient concentrations were high in Quercus alba and Q. ilicifolia, intermediate in Q. coccinea, Gaylussacia baccata, Vaccinium angustifolium, and V. vacillans, and low in P. rigida and Kalmia angustifolia. With the exception of Kalmia the species of the lower strata and earlier woody successional stages of the forest higher mean nutrient concentrations in the biomass than did the upper strata and climax tree species. Among tissues flowers, leaves, and fruits contained the highest concentrations; heartwood, the lowest. Weighted mean nutrient concentrations were higher for net primary production than for biomass by "enrichment ratios" mostly between 1.5 and 3.0 in the Bookhaven forest and comparable forests for which data are available. Nutrient element profiles showed the contrats in concentrations of different elements in species as deviations from the means for the forest as a whole. The contrasting nutrient profiles may express niche difference in nutrient use among the plant species of the community.
Woodwell et al. (Sat,) studied this question.