Foliar metabolites from three species or breeding generations of chestnuts with soil data collected from xeric and sub-mesic sites in northern Pennsylvania, USA

This data publication contains tabular foliar data from American chestnut, Chinese chestnut, and American backcross hybrid, together with tabular relative soil data, collected from three locations classified as xeric and three as sub-mesic, all in in northern Pennsylvania, USA. The six sites ranged from Warren County in the west to Potter County in the east, and formed a soil moisture gradient. The foliar metabolites and soil characteristics are part of a study on the impacts of site conditions on tree health as to the re-introduction and establishment of three species of breeding generations of chestnut. From August 10 to 16, 2015, foliage from five randomly selected American chestnut, Chinese chestnut, and American backcross hybrid was collected from six plots representing two different soil moisture regimes (SMR) with Integrated Moisture Indices (IMI) ranging from 29.4 at the driest to 55.6 at the wettest site. Foliar data includes free polyamines, free amino acids, soluble ions, chlorophyll, and soluble protein analyzed by HPLC, ICP-OES and spectrophotometer. Five soil samples (soil profile with A, B, and E horizons; E present only at some sites) were collected twice (2014 and 2020) from pits near the foliar sampling sites. During the 2014 growing season, five replicate samples were combined into one representative sample per horizon for analysis. For soils collected in the summer of 2020, five replicates from each horizon were analyzed individually. Soil data includes SMR, IMI, plant available water, soil pH, % organic matter, Nitrate-Nitrogen (N), Ammonium-N, exchangeable ions, acidity, effective cation exchange capacity, % sand/silt/clay, and soil texture by pH meter, Flow Injection Analysis-Ion Analyzer, Titration, and ICP-OES.
The goal of this study was to evaluate if and how site soil moisture characteristics impact foliar physiology and metabolism of three types of chestnuts planted in managed forests within northern Pennsylvania.
For additional information about this study and these data, see Pinchot et al. (2020).