Ecological studies on the Lime Hill serpentine,Scotland

Summary

Lime Hill is an example of a serpentine outcrop which shows only to a limited extent the features of vegetation often associated with ultrabasic rock. Plant and soil analyses from this site are presented and compared with those from other Scottish serpentines. Substantial quantities of heavy metals are present at Lime Hill. It is suggested that the cause of the absence of serpentine-characteristic plants lies in a relatively low soil Mg : Ca ratio and/or high P and K levels.