Proportion Of Lime Research Articles

Phosphorus versus Lime in Plant Ash

THAT in the mineral constituents of leaves a strong proportion of lime is an obstacle to the presence of a considerable quantity of potass has been recognised as a feature of calcifugous species of plants. It has been sought, indeed, to explain, apparently on this ground alone, the existence of special plants which shun lime soils, or at least to account for the difference between their habitat and that of calcicolous species. A certain proportion of lime in, the soil, say about 12 per cent, carbonate, is sufficient for the needs of a certain number of calcicolous species and banishes the calcifugous species from it. If, however, we carefully examine the ash constituents of the leaves of herbs growing and seeding in a soil (such as here in this valley) with only about 1 per cent, lime (CaO) in its finer particles, we recognise a large ratio both of potass and of lime, as the annexed table will attest.