Monteverde : Ecology and Conservation of a Tropical Cloud Forest

Table 2.3. Mean percentage of carbon and nitrogen contents, C:N ratios, and pH in arboreal and surface
soils from selected montane forest sites.
Location Sample % Carbon % Nitrogen C:N Ratio pH
Monteverde, leeward cloud forest^3

Volcan Barva, Costa Ricab

Volcan Barva, Costa Ricac

Blue Mountains, Jamaicad

Canopy

FF-H

A horizon

0-15 cm (O, A horizons)

1000m

1500 m

2000 m

0-15 cm (O, A horizons)

1000m

1500m

2000m

0-10 cm

West Slope

Gap Forest

Mull Ridge

Mor Ridge

37.6

27.0

25.3

15.7

26.0

23.0

14.6

19.0

19.6

3.9

9.0

29.2

47.4

2.4

1.4

1.0

1.4

1.9

1.7

—

—

—

0.4

0.5

1.7

1.6

15.9

18.7

25.8

11.6

13.7

13.5

—

—

—

9.8

18.0

17.2

29.6

3.8

4.6

5.4

4.4

—

—

4.0

3.8

3.8

4.4

4.4

3.7

3.0

In Monteverde, canopy samples were from large branches about 20 m above the forest floor, FF-H samples were from the upper 10 cm of the
forest floor, and A samples were from 10—20 cm below the forest floor (see Chap. 9 on ecosystem ecology).
aN. Nadkarni, unpubl. data.
bMarrs et al. 1988.
GGrieve et al. 1990.
dTanner 1977. Sample names are those used by Tanner.

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35 The Physical Environment