Soil and foliar chemistry associated with potassium deficiency in Pinus radiata

We required an improved understanding of K deficiency and diagnosis in Pinus radiata D. Don (radiata pine). A rapid growth response to K fertilization (100 kg·ha-1) in the presence of weed control confirmed K deficiency in a 2-year-old stand. Tree growth did not respond to N fertilization, and weed control alone appeared insufficient to maximize tree growth. Temporal patterns in visual symptoms of K deficiency suggested they were worst at the end of a drought, and improved after several months of above-average rainfall that coincided with an increase in soil temperature. Soil chemistry generally responded predictably to fertilization, but K fertilization increased soil solution Ca and Mg concentrations without changing exchangeable concentrations. With weed control, a doubling of stem growth response to K fertilizer was associated with a 270% increase in soil solution K (natural variation amongst control plots), 51% increase in exchangeable K, and 39% increase in foliar K. Relationships between seedling growth and hydroponic concentrations of K were consistent with the incidence of K deficiency in the field; predicting these deficiencies using soil exchangeable concentrations was less clear. This study advances the interpretation of soil and foliar chemistry in relation to K and Mg deficiency in P. radiata.