Soil Properties and Selected Aluminium Forms in Acid Forest Soils as Influenced by the Type of Stand Factors

Massive forest damage has been observed in certain mountainous regions affected by acidification. Declining of trees is ascribed to direct effect of SO₂ and also increasing concentration of mobile forms of Al in soils. The aim of this paper is to describe the influence of stand factors to distribution of Al forms in the Jizera Mountains region, Czech Republic. A set of 251 samples from 98 sites was collected. Basic soil characteristics and the content of different Al forms were determined. The amount and relative share of these Al forms under different types of vegetation was evaluated, with emphasis on the surface organic horizons. The results showed that phytotoxic mobile Al forms are the most influenced by altitude and organically bound Al forms by forest type. Non-toxic forms of Al are more abundant in broadleaved forest. Soils under coniferous forest are more affected by acidification.