SOILS AND PLANT NUTRITION ON A SERPENTINIZED RIDGE IN SOUTH GERMANY .2. FOLIAGE MACRO-NUTRIENT AND HEAVY-METAL CONCENTRATIONS

The macro-nutrient and heavy metal concentrations in the leaves of cha racteristic herbaceous species growing on different soil types of a se rpentinized ridge, were investigated. Cerastium holosteoides exhibited extremely high Mg, Fe, Ni and Cr levels on a virgin serpentinite soil ; Silene vulgaris was characterized compared to it by a restricted acc umulation of those elements. Deschampsia flexuosa which showed the low est Mg and Ni concentrations of the investigated species on more devel oped soils had much higher Cr levels than intraspecific populations on non-serpentinized forest soils.