Short-term flux chamber experiment to quantify the deposition of gaseous 15N-NH3 to Calluna vulgaris

A flux chamber experiment employing 15N-NH3 was run for a period of 15 days to quantify uptake of NH3 into the component parts of Calluna vulgaris and peat substrate. The results showed that the total N recovered from the vegetation system correlated extremely well with AMANDA deposition measurement, over the whole 15-day period, accounting for all the deposited NH3. The data showed that NH3 was taken up into the above ground biomass over the 15 days of the experiment; 75% was found in green shoots and leaves and 11% in brown shoots. The larger uptake by green shoots and leaves was presumably related to the presence of stomata and the cuticular surface area. Only 1% was captured by the peat due to the closed C. vulgaris canopy. There was little translocation of N from deposited NH3 into the roots and peat. For C. vulgaris it can be calculated that 75% of the above ground deposition was onto the cuticle and only 25% into the stomata.