Effect of the elemental composition of soils on the reproductive organs of permanent crops in relation to the altitudinal gradient

Abstract

The qualitative composition and quantitative content of mineral substances in the soils and fruits of Prunus armeniaca L. and Malus domestica Borkh. cultivated in the environmental conditions of the plains and foothills of central Daghestan has been estimated. The adaptation of apricot and apple trees to the natural factors of the lower foothills results in higher sugar concentrations in their fruits in comparison with trees growing on plains; the apricot and apple trees growing on lower foothills concentrate more Ca and P, while the contents of K, Na, Mg, and Cu in their fruits are reduced. Plants of the same species growing on soils with different contents of mineral substances differ by the total content of macro- and microelements in their fruits but accumulate roughly equivalent levels of P, Na, Ca, Cu, Ni, and Pb.