Abstract
The wet tropics are characterized by year-round high temperatures and high humidities, resulting in growing seasons which can extend up to 12 months per year. Consequently, primary productivity and nutrient cycling rates are high on an annual basis. However, long periods of high temperature and high humidity also result in high annual rates of soil respiration with consequent high production of carbonic acid in the soil. The acid dissociates and the hydrogen replaces cations exchanged on clay surfaces or bound in clay minerals. Cations thus released are quickly leached from the soil by heavy rains. The low pH of many tropical soils resulting from high concentrations of carbonic acid also results in binding of phosphorus with iron and aluminum. For these reasons, available nutrients are relatively scarce in soils of the wet tropics compared to ecosystems in other regions.
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© 1984 Dr W. Junk Publishers, The Hague
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Jordan, C.F. (1984). Nutrient Regime in The Wet Tropics: Physical Factors. In: Medina, E., Mooney, H.A., Vázquez-Yánes, C. (eds) Physiological ecology of plants of the wet tropics. Tasks for vegetation Science, vol 12. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-7299-5_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-7299-5_2
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