The aim of the study was to compare ten species of herbaceous plants of mid-forest spring niches in terms of the accumulation of N, P, K, Mg, Ca, Zn, Cu, Ni, Mn, Fe, Sr and Al. The content of nutrients in aerial shoots of plants was analyzed by considering each component separately and in an integrated way, comparing the demand of the examined species for nutritional components. The research was done in a headwater riparian forest situated in the upper course of the Kamienna Creek valley, located on the territory of the Leśny Dwór Forest Inspectorate (Northern Poland). The examined species of plants demonstrated statistically significant differences in concentrations of macro- and microelements in shoots, except for zinc. The plants accumulated from 1754.3 to 2934.8 mmolc.kg-1 of the examined components in total, and a percentage of each component in their sum was determined by the nutritional requirements of particular species of plants in respect to macro- and microelements.  Macroelements in total constituted from 99.39% to 99.71% of the sum of the components. The highest content of nutrients was noted in the shoots of Urtica dioica, and the lowest one in Carex echinata. Nitrogen in the examined species constituted 42.6% - 52.9% of the sum of nutrients, phosphorus 2.9% - 14.2%, potassium 19.1% - 34.9%, magnesium 7.0% - 24.8% and calcium 4.8% - 8.5%, and total microelements constituted from 0.29% in the shoots of Caltha palustris to 0.67% in the shoots of Valeriana officinalis. Fe represented the highest share in the sum of microelements: 20.9% - 51.6 %, Al 17.3% - 40.6% and Mn 8.4% - 28.9%, which represents substantial migration of these elements from roots to aerial shoots. It was also found that the species of plants which belonged to the same families of plants showed similar accumulation capacity.

23.1.2018