Linking soil physicochemical properties to leaf nutrient composition in olive orchards on semi-arid calcareous soils

This study examines whether bulk soil nutrient pools reliably reflect leaf nutrient status in olive orchards under alkaline, calcareous conditions, where carbonate buffering is known to constrain nutrient availability. We evaluated soil–leaf nutrient relationships in 25 rainfed olive orchards (‘Kilis Yaglik’) in southeastern Türkiye over two consecutive years (2017–2018). Soils remained strongly alkaline and highly calcareous, while organic matter declined by approximately 35% between years. Leaf nutrient composition did not consistently track soil nutrient dynamics. While some soil nutrients exhibited interannual variation, corresponding leaf responses were element-specific and not uniformly aligned with soil changes. Correlation and principal component analyses revealed variable and year-dependent associations between soil and leaf nutrients, with no reproducible, strong soil–leaf relationships across years. These findings indicate that, under carbonate-buffered conditions, bulk soil nutrient pools are not reliable predictors of canopy nutrient status. Instead, leaf nutrient composition appears to reflect integrated and element-specific availability patterns rather than direct soil–plant coupling.