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A Survey of the Nutrient Composition of Leaf Samples from North Carolina Peach Orchards¹

ABSTRACT

A group of 153 leaf samples was collected from North Carolina peach orchards over the period 1950–52 using sampling techniques which were standardized in respect to date of sampling and leaf age and position. The samples were analyzed spectrographically for phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, boron, copper, manganese, iron, and aluminum. Zinc and nitrogen were determined by chemical methods. The data are discussed from the standpoint of discerning broad general trends in the nutrient status of trees in a particular area and of using this information as a basis on which to establish or expand soil fertility investigations.

Levels of phosphorus, potassium, and manganese were found to be well above the deficiency ranges for peaches as reported from this and other areas. Clear-cut foliar symptoms of deficiencies of magnesium and zinc were noted in some orchards, and leaf analyses indicate near deficiency in other orchards. Leaf levels of iron, boron, and copper were low as compared with results from surveys in other areas. Foliar symptoms of iron deficiency and symptoms possibly due to boron deficiency were noted in some orchards. Symptoms of copper deficiency were not observed here, nor have they been described for peaches elsewhere. Leaf levels of copper were in many orchards lower than the levels of adequacy reported for other crops. The results of this survey suggest that further study is warranted concerning deficiencies of magnesium, zinc, iron, boron, and copper in North Carolina peach orchards.

¹ Published with the approval of the Director of Research, North Carolina Agr. Exp. Sta. as Paper No. 597 of the journal series. Presented at annual meeting of the Soil Science Society of America, St. Paul, Minn., Nov. 8–12, 1954.

² Associate Professor of Agronomy and Professor of Chemistry, respectively.

Received for publication October 5, 1954.