Trace element problems on Scottish soils.

Abstract

The soils of Scotland are varied and relatively young, developed from glacial tills laid down about 12 000 years ago. The complex geology has produced varied trace element contents, usually related directly to their contents in the parent rock. Many of these elements are mobilized readily in soils with impeded drainage. Deficiencies of Co, Cu, Mn, B and Se have been recorded in plants or animals. Mo and Ni levels occasionally cause problems in animals and plants respectively. The trace element status of a soil can seldom be related to its total content: an extraction technique appropriate to the element in question is used to assess availability to plants. The Soil Survey of Scotland has reached the stage at which soil associations and soil series can be used to assess the probable trace element situation, particularly on arable land. Trace element contents of soils and plants are determined largely by spectrochemical methods. 19 references. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)