In Wisconsin there is concern that timber harvesting on nutrient-poor, sandy soils could lead to depletion of nutrients. This concern could become exacerbated by the increasing demand for biofuels, followed by intensified utilization practices. This project measured dry matter and macronutrient (N, P, K, Ca, and Mg) pools and major inputs (bulk precipitation, weathering+mineralization index) and outputs (leaching losses) on four treatment plots at each of five sites on sandy soils at the Governor Knowles State Forest in northwest Wisconsin: an unharvested treatment, a conventional removal of stem and branches down to a diameter of 5cm, a removal of stem and branches down to a diameter of 10cm, a removal of all aboveground biomass. All treatments were applied during the early winter, leaf-off period. Data collected over 2years (2010 and 2011) were applied to a nutrient-balance equation to determine if there were treatment-related differences in nutrient accumulation or depletion. The labile soil was the leading pre- and post-harvest pool for P, K, Ca and Mg in the ecosystem. Biomass removed during Whole-tree harvests constituted ∼50% of the ecosystem nitrogen and contributed significantly to the removal of the other macronutrients. From nutrient input–output balances, N (NH4 and NO3), K, Ca, and Mg were calculated to be accumulating on all harvest treatments. During the first year after harvest (2010), N mineralization, along with P and Ca accumulation rate, was significantly greater than unharvested treatments. Nitrogen accumulation rates, along with leaching losses of N and P, were significantly lower on all harvest treatments than on unharvested treatments. There were no significant differences in mineralization rates and leaching losses among treatments for the other macronutrients. During the second year (2011), differences in N mineralization, leaching and accumulation rates had largely disappeared. Phosphorus was the only nutrient that showed a net depletion, and this depletion was detected for all harvested treatments. However, the depletion rates were so low that it would take several rotations for any P deficiencies to become apparent. The results of this study may not apply to other sandy soils.