NUTRIENTS IN THE LITTER OF A SEASONAL DECIDUOUS FOREST FRAGMENT OF ITAARA, RS

The aim of the present study was to quantity aboveground mass and nutrients in a deciduous seasonal forest fragment in the district of Itaara, RS, Brazil. For quantification and fractionation of the litter, sampling was carried out using two methodologies: the first one for leaves and branches with diameter smaller than 1 cm (S0) and the second one for woody material with diameter varying from 1 cm to 3 cm (S1), 3.1 cm to 6 cm (S2), and greater than 6 cm (S3). To evaluate the S0 fraction, 50 randomly sample were collected with a metallic frame of 25 cm x 25 cm, and for S1, S2 and S3 10 plots of 3 m x 2 m were distributed randomly in the area of study. Samples was packed and taken to the Laboratory of Forest Ecology of the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, where they were dried, weighed, ground and analyzed for nutrient contents. The woody senescent litter represented about 45% of the litter layer. Litter classes differed statistically in relation to nutrient content ( p < 0.05), except for Mg and Cu; usually the S0 fraction presented higher contents. The fractions S1, S2 and S3 showed an accumulation of nutrients ranging from 53.3% to 8.7% K for Fe in the total litter, demonstrating the importance of quantification of these components during the evaluation of nutrient stocks contained in the litter of the forest ecosystem.