Sodium and Potassium Accumulation by Greasewood and Hopsage Leaves

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Abstract
During their annual leaf-retention periods in 1963, greasewood [Sarcobatus vermicula-tus] and hopsage [Grayia spinosa] leaves acculmulate large amounts of sodium and potassium, respectively. Hopsage leaves abscised in mid-July after soil moisture in the upper meter of soil profile became depleted. Leaf drop was preceded by about 6 weeks of lowered leaf moisture content. Greasewood leaves persisted throughout the summer months without gross changes in leaf moisture content, indicating that greasewood was obtaining water from a deep water table. Mineral uptake, leaf abscission, and the subsequent decay of leaves resulted in increased sodium and potassium content in the soils beneath greasewood and hopsage, respectively. Cheatgrass plants growing adjacent to greasewood canopies had a higher sodium content than those growing adjacent to hopsage canopies or in adjacent intershrub areas.

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